Prison Surprise: Brazil's FormerPresident Jair Bolsonaro Faces Life Behind Bars

He contested the legal system and justice won.

Sixty days after getting a twenty-seven-year sentence for trying to “eradicate” the nation's political system, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro at last appears headed to prison.

Expected Jailing

The convicted instigator – who has been living under house arrest in his residence while a number of court processes and appeals play out – is broadly anticipated to be jailed in the near future, amid mounting rumors that he will be sent to a infamous maximum security facility.

Historical Remarks on Prisoners

Over Bolsonaro’s four-decade political career, the far-right former military man showed minimal mercy for the country's inmates.

“Why should we offer those lowlifes a good life?” he previously wondered. “They ought to simply be fucked, end of story. That's my opinion.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro stated: “Unless you desire to finish in prison, the only thing required is not sexual assault, kidnap or theft.”

Incarceration Destination Speculation

But the prospect of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda prison top-security prison in Brasília has horrified supporters, four of whom this week toured the prison in an seeming bid to discourage the judiciary from banishing him there.

Senator Lucas, a senator from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was part of that quartet, claimed he predicted the septuagenarian leader to be jailed in the coming fortnight and feared his location could be Papuda.

Lucas claimed Bolsonaro’s acute gut ailments – the outcome of a near-fatal knife attack during the 2018 presidential campaign – meant it would be dangerous to keep the ex-leader there. “His [health] situation is extremely serious. He won’t be able to handle it if they send him to Papuda … It would be terrible,” he commented, who also expressed concern about cramped cells and the quality of prison meals.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas recalled seeing cells accommodating forty detainees: “It's almost one square meter per prisoner.

“We talked to the prisoners and they protest, of course, of the awful cuisine,” continued the senator.

Allies Voice Concerns

The senator isn't the sole person voicing opinions prior to the one-time head of state's anticipated imprisonment.

Authoring in a leading daily, one more backer, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “severe” end to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” political career and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the biggest unfairness in its history”.

“It is an injustice that erodes the spirits of countless of Brazilians,” Wajngarten wrote.

Divided General Response

It is possibly accurate considering the significant backing Bolsonaro maintains on the conservative side. Yet his expected imprisonment has also warmed the feelings of numerous individuals who believe he should be incarcerated for conspiring to stop his successor from taking power – and even scheming to have him murdered.

Congressman Otoni, a politician for the sitting administration's Workers’ party, stated: “Not a soul wishes Bolsonaro to be placed in a hole. Nobody desires Bolsonaro to be sent in segregation. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to lie on concrete. We want him to obtain respectful handling – but dignified handling while incarcerated. He cannot persist being his own prison warden for his lifetime.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro supporters, who have spent years applauding the severe handling of inmates, had abruptly realized to their entitlements. “Only now has the extreme right – which has consistently asserted that civil liberties were not for lawbreakers – decided to inspect a penitentiary to learn what situations are truly like,” he remarked.

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

Likely Incarceration Facilities

In spite of talk that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which presently contains about thousands of prisoners, his more likely assigned facility looks to be a nearby penitentiary for officers and other “particular” detainees referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda).

Its cells are considerably more pleasant than those in the primary facility, although nonetheless a far cry from the luxury Bolsonaro had while living in the stunning official residence, approximately 12 miles away.

According to reports, the room Bolsonaro could likely inhabit in Papudinha is about 24 sq metres – about the size of vehicle spaces – and contains a 130 square foot bathroom with a water facility and a 12 square meter terrace. “Bolsonaro would be permitted to have a TV and also a small fridge in his cell as long as they were supplied by his family,” information stated.

Political Reactions

The lawmaker denounced the speculated proposal to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a form of retaliation” on the part of the judicial authority who presided over Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will rule on his outcome in the {