Prison Shock: Brazil's FormerPresident Bolsonaro Faces Time in Prison

He fought justice and justice prevailed.

Sixty days subsequent to receiving a twenty-seven-year sentence for trying to “eradicate” Brazil’s democratic institutions, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro finally seems headed to prison.

Imminent Incarceration

The convicted instigator – who had been living under residential detention in his residence while a series of judicial steps and challenges proceed – is widely expected to be imprisoned in the next few days, amidst mounting talk that he will be transferred to a well-known high-security facility.

Previous Comments on Convicts

Over Bolsonaro’s long public life, the far-right ex- paratrooper exhibited scant mercy for the country's prison population.

“For what reason must we give those lowlifes a easy time?” he once pondered. “They ought to simply be fucked, full-fucking-stop. That's my view.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro proclaimed: “If you don’t want to end up in prison, all you have to do is not sexual assault, abduction or rob.”

Incarceration Location Discussion

However the idea of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has horrified allies, four of whom this week toured the facility in an obvious bid to discourage the judiciary from transferring him there.

The senator, a senator from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was among that group, said he predicted the 70-year-old politician to be imprisoned in the coming fortnight and was concerned his assigned prison could be Papuda.

He asserted Bolsonaro’s severe intestinal issues – the result of a almost deadly knife attack during the last election race – meant it would be dangerous to keep the ex-leader there. “His health is very grave. He will not be able to handle it if they send him to Papuda … It would be awful,” said the senator, who also worried about packed cells and the quality of prison meals.

During his tour Papuda, Lucas noted seeing cells containing forty prisoners: “That’s almost one square metre per detainee.

“We spoke to the convicts and they complain, naturally, of the horrible cuisine,” remarked the senator.

Allies React

He is not the sole person expressing views before the ex-leader's predicted imprisonment.

Writing in a prominent publication, a different supporter, the former cabinet member Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “severe” conclusion to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” public service and claimed Brazil was about to witness “the biggest political injustice in its history”.

“This is an injustice that erodes the spirits of many of Brazilians,” Wajngarten wrote.

Varied General Response

It is possibly true due to the significant support Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. But his predicted incarceration has also pleased the spirits of many other people who believe he should be imprisoned for conspiring to block the incoming president from taking power – and additionally scheming to have him assassinated.

Congressman Otoni, a congressman for the current president's Workers’ party, said: “Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be placed in a dungeon. No one wishes Bolsonaro to be sent in solitary confinement. No one wants Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We wish him to receive proper treatment – but respectful care while incarcerated. He can’t carry on being his own prison warden for his whole life.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro supporters, who have spent years applauding the tough conditions of prisoners, had suddenly realized to their privileges. “Just now has the far-right – which has consistently asserted that civil liberties are not for criminals – opted to visit a prison to find out what situations are actually like,” he said.

“The former president is a offender,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he earned “shameful, insulting treatment”.

Possible Prison Conditions

In spite of talk that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which presently houses about 14,000 detainees, his more likely destination seems to be a adjacent prison for officers and other “particular” prisoners called Papudinha (Minor Papuda).

His potential cell are considerably more adequate than those in the main prison, although nevertheless a far cry from the luxury Bolsonaro enjoyed while residing in the impressive presidential palace, approximately a short distance away.

Based on sources, the room Bolsonaro could likely inhabit in Papudinha measures about 24 sq metres – approximately the area of two parking spaces – and features a 12 sq metre WC with a shower and a 130 square foot terrace. “He could be authorized to have a TV and also a small fridge in his room as long as they were provided by his family,” sources stated.

Political Responses

The lawmaker criticized the speculated proposal to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “an act of revenge” on the part of the judicial authority who oversaw Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will determine his future in the {