Prison Shock: Brazil's Ex-President Bolsonaro Faces Time Behind Bars

He fought the legal system and the legal system prevailed.

Two months following receiving a twenty-seven-year sentence for trying to “destroy” the nation's political system, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last appears destined for incarceration.

Imminent Imprisonment

The convicted plotter – who's been living under home confinement in his mansion while a series of legal procedures and petitions play out – is largely predicted to be imprisoned in the coming days, during growing speculation that he will be sent to a notorious maximum security penitentiary.

Past Statements on Inmates

Over Bolsonaro’s long time in politics, the conservative ex- military man exhibited little sympathy for the country's inmates.

“Why should we offer these scoundrels a easy time?” he once mused. “They ought to simply be screwed, full-fucking-stop. That's my opinion.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro proclaimed: “Unless you desire to end up in prison, you simply need is to avoid sexual assault, abduction or theft.”

Prison Destination Discussion

Yet the possibility of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda high-security prison in Brasília has shocked backers, several of whom this week inspected the facility in an apparent effort to prevent the judiciary from sending him there.

The senator, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s allied group who was one of the visitors, said he predicted the 70-year-old leader to be imprisoned in the following week and a half and feared his location could be Papuda.

He asserted Bolsonaro’s acute gut problems – the outcome of a life-threatening assault during the 2018 presidential political campaign – implied it would be hazardous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His condition is highly critical. He won’t be able to manage if they take him to Papuda … It could be awful,” said the senator, who also worried about overcrowded cells and the condition of prison meals.

During his tour Papuda, Lucas remembered seeing cells containing 40 prisoners: “That’s almost one square metre per prisoner.

“We talked to the inmates and they protest, naturally, of the horrible food,” remarked the senator.

Backers Speak Out

The senator isn't the sole person expressing views before the ex-leader's anticipated imprisonment.

Penning in a prominent daily, a different supporter, the ex- cabinet member Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “harsh” conclusion to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” time in office and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the greatest political injustice in its record”.

“It is an injustice that gnaws the souls of millions people in Brazil,” the former minister said.

Divided Popular Reaction

This could be true considering the considerable following Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. However his anticipated jailing has also pleased the spirits of numerous other people who believe he ought to be incarcerated for planning to stop the elected leader from becoming president – and also plotting to have him killed.

Reimont Otoni, a representative for the incumbent administration's political party, commented: “Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to be placed in a hole. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to be placed in isolation. Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We want him to receive dignified treatment – but dignified treatment in prison. He cannot carry on being his self-appointed guard for his whole life.”

The congressman noted how Bolsonaro supporters, who have long applauding the harsh handling of prisoners, had abruptly become aware to their rights. “Only now has the extreme right – which has always argued that civil liberties are not for criminals – opted to inspect a prison to find out what conditions are really like,” he remarked.

“Bolsonaro is a criminal,” he affirmed, but that did not mean he earned “humiliating, insulting handling”.

Likely Jail Conditions

Despite rumors that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which currently holds about fourteen thousand inmates, his expected assigned facility seems to be a nearby penitentiary for law enforcement and other “particular” inmates called Papudinha (Small Papuda).

The accommodations are far more pleasant than those in the larger jail, although nonetheless a distant from the luxury Bolsonaro enjoyed while residing in the impressive official residence, approximately 12 miles away.

According to reports, the room Bolsonaro could expect to inhabit in Papudinha has about 24 square meters – approximately the dimensions of two parking spaces – and contains a 12 square meter restroom with a shower and a 12 sq metre terrace. “He could be allowed to have a television and also a small fridge in his room as long as they were donated by his family,” sources suggested.

Political Reactions

Senator Lucas criticized the talked-about idea to send the ex-president to Papuda as “a type of payback” on the part of the supreme court judge who presided over Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will determine his future in the {