Jailhouse Shock: The Ex-President Bolsonaro Confronts Time Behind Bars
He fought justice and the law triumphed.
Two months following being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for trying to “annihilate” Brazil’s democratic institutions, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro finally looks headed to prison.
Expected Imprisonment
The adjudicated plotter – who had been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of judicial steps and appeals proceed – is widely expected to be jailed in the next few days, amid increasing speculation that he will be sent to a notorious top-security penitentiary.
Previous Statements on Prisoners
Over Bolsonaro’s 40-year political career, the far-right ex- soldier displayed little mercy for the country's inmates.
“Why should we provide those lowlifes a good life?” he once mused. “They deserve to be fucked, end of story. That’s what I reckon.”
In another instance, Bolsonaro stated: “If you don’t want to end up behind bars, the only thing required is to avoid rape, kidnap or theft.”
Prison Location Debate
But the idea of Bolsonaro himself winding up in the Papuda top-security prison in Brasília has horrified supporters, four of whom this week visited the prison in an apparent attempt to prevent the judiciary from sending him there.
Senator Lucas, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s political party who was one of the visitors, claimed he predicted the septuagenarian figure to be jailed in the next 10 days and feared his destination could be Papuda.
The senator argued Bolsonaro’s severe intestinal issues – the outcome of a life-threatening stabbing during the 2018 presidential campaign – implied it would be hazardous to keep the former president there. “His condition is highly critical. He won’t be able to cope if they send him to Papuda … It would be terrible,” he added, who also expressed concern about cramped cells and the condition of inmate food.
During his tour Papuda, Lucas recalled seeing cells holding forty prisoners: “It's practically one square meter per detainee.
“We conversed to the inmates and they complain, unsurprisingly, of the horrible cuisine,” remarked the senator.
Allies React
He is not the sole person expressing views ahead of the ex-leader's predicted incarceration.
Authoring in a major newspaper, a different supporter, the former government official Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “harsh” finale to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” time in office and asserted Brazil was about to experience “the biggest political injustice in its record”.
“It is an wrong that eats away the souls of many of Brazilians,” Wajngarten wrote.
Divided Popular Reaction
That may be true considering the significant following Bolsonaro maintains on the right-wing. But his anticipated jailing has also gladdened the hearts of many others who think he deserves to be jailed for conspiring to block the elected leader from assuming office – and additionally scheming to have him assassinated.
The lawmaker, a congressman for the sitting leader's Workers’ party, said: “No one desires Bolsonaro to be put in a dark cell. Nobody desires Bolsonaro to be placed in segregation. Not a soul wants Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We wish him to get proper care – but respectful handling behind bars. He can’t continue being his own prison warden for his lifetime.”
He observed how Bolsonaro backers, who have for a long time applauding the harsh handling of inmates, had suddenly become aware to their rights. “Recently has the conservative fringe – which has consistently argued that human rights should not be for criminals – opted to inspect a jail to learn what situations are truly like,” he stated.
“He is a criminal,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he earned “degrading, degrading treatment”.
Likely Incarceration Facilities
Despite speculation that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which presently houses about fourteen thousand prisoners, his probable location seems to be a close jail for officers and other “unique” detainees referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda).
Its cells are much more adequate than those in the main prison, although still a far cry from the luxury Bolsonaro experienced while residing in the stunning presidential palace, around a short distance away.
As per sources, the accommodation Bolsonaro could likely reside in in Papudinha is about 24 sq metres – approximately the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and contains a 130 square foot WC with a water facility and a 12 square meter balcony. “The ex-president might be allowed to have a set and also a minibar in his cell as long as they were provided by his loved ones,” the report indicated.
Ideological Comments
He condemned the speculated idea to send the former leader to Papuda as “an act of revenge” on the part of the supreme court judge who oversaw Bolsonaro’s legal case and will determine his fate in the {