Prison Surprise: The Ex-President Bolsonaro Faces Life in Prison

He battled the legal system and the law triumphed.

Two months subsequent to being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for trying to “annihilate” Brazil’s democracy, former president Jair Bolsonaro at last seems headed to prison.

Imminent Incarceration

The found-guilty plotter – who has been living under residential detention in his estate while a series of court processes and appeals proceed – is widely expected to be jailed in the near future, during increasing talk that he will be sent to a infamous top-security penitentiary.

Historical Statements on Inmates

Over Bolsonaro’s long political career, the conservative ex- paratrooper showed minimal mercy for Brazil’s prison population.

“Why should we offer these lowlifes a good life?” he previously wondered. “They should just get messed, full-fucking-stop. That’s what I reckon.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro declared: “Should you not wish to end up behind bars, all you have to do is to avoid sexual assault, abduction or theft.”

Prison Destination Speculation

Yet the prospect of Bolsonaro himself winding up in the Papuda prison maximum security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, several of whom this week toured the complex in an obvious attempt to prevent the judiciary from banishing him there.

The senator, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was among that group, claimed he anticipated the 70-year-old figure to be incarcerated in the next 10 days and was concerned his location could be Papuda.

The senator argued Bolsonaro’s serious gut ailments – the result of a almost deadly stabbing during the 2018 election race – meant it would be hazardous to keep the former president there. “His health is highly critical. He cannot to cope if they take him to Papuda … It will be dreadful,” he added, who also voiced anxiety about cramped cells and the standard of prison meals.

While visiting Papuda, Lucas recalled witnessing cells holding forty prisoners: “It's practically one meter squared per prisoner.

“We spoke to the prisoners and they protest, of course, of the terrible meals,” remarked the senator.

Backers React

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

Authoring in a leading publication, a different supporter, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, lamented the “brutal” finale to Bolsonaro’s “impeccable” time in office and asserted Brazil was about to witness “the greatest wrong in its past”.

“This is an wrong that erodes the spirits of countless of Brazilians,” the former minister said.

Divided Public Reaction

It is possibly true considering the significant following Bolsonaro holds on the conservative side. But his anticipated jailing has also gladdened the spirits of numerous other people who believe he deserves to be incarcerated for planning to stop the elected leader from taking power – and also plotting to have him murdered.

Congressman Otoni, a representative for the incumbent president's political party, commented: “Not a soul wishes Bolsonaro to be placed in a hole. No one desires Bolsonaro to be sent in solitary confinement. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to lie on concrete. We wish him to receive proper care – but proper handling in prison. He must not persist being his personal jailer for his lifetime.”

He observed how Bolsonaro allies, who have for a long time applauding the harsh treatment of inmates, had abruptly become aware to their entitlements. “Only now has the extreme right – which has repeatedly asserted that basic rights are not for offenders – opted to tour a prison to learn what conditions are actually like,” he remarked.

“Bolsonaro is a offender,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he merited “shameful, degrading conduct”.

Potential Incarceration Facilities

Regardless of speculation that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which currently holds about 14,000 prisoners, his expected location looks to be a close penitentiary for officers and other “special” inmates known as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

Its cells are considerably more comfortable than those in the main prison, although still a world away from the luxury Bolsonaro experienced while residing in the impressive official residence, around 12 miles away.

According to information, the cell Bolsonaro could likely occupy in Papudinha is about 24 sq metres – about the area of vehicle spaces – and features a 12 sq metre bathroom with a bathing area and a 12 sq metre terrace. “Bolsonaro would be allowed to have a TV and also a cooler in his room as long as they were supplied by his relatives,” the report suggested.

Political Responses

Senator Lucas criticized the speculated idea to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “an act of retaliation” on the part of the judicial authority who oversaw Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will decide his future in the {

Terry Richards
Terry Richards

A Berlin-based tech enthusiast and digital strategist with over a decade of experience in web development and creative content.