🔗 Share this article

He fought the law and the law won.

Two months after being handed a twenty-seven-year sentence for attempting to “destroy” Brazil’s political system, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last appears headed to prison.

Anticipated Incarceration

The convicted coup-monger – who has been subject to home confinement in his mansion while a set of court processes and petitions proceed – is largely predicted to be imprisoned in the next few days, during mounting talk that he will be transferred to a notorious high-security facility.

Past Statements on Inmates

Over Bolsonaro’s 40-year public life, the far-right ex- paratrooper exhibited minimal mercy for the country's prison population.

“Why should we give these lowlifes a easy time?” he once mused. “They deserve to be screwed, end of story. That’s what I reckon.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro declared: “If you don’t want to end up there, the only thing required is to avoid rape, kidnap or theft.”

Incarceration Facility Speculation

However the prospect of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda prison top-security prison in Brasília has horrified supporters, several of whom this week toured the complex in an seeming attempt to dissuade the supreme court from transferring him there.

Izalci Lucas, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s political party who was part of that quartet, stated he predicted the elderly politician to be jailed in the following week and a half and was concerned his destination could be Papuda.

Lucas claimed Bolsonaro’s acute intestinal problems – the outcome of a near-fatal assault during the 2018 presidential political campaign – signified it would be risky to keep the former president there. “His [health] situation is extremely serious. He cannot to manage if they take him to Papuda … It will be awful,” he added, who also worried about cramped cells and the quality of jail cuisine.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas remembered observing cells accommodating 40 inmates: “That is almost one square metre per detainee.

“We conversed to the prisoners and they complain, unsurprisingly, of the horrible cuisine,” added the senator.

Supporters Voice Concerns

The senator isn't the only voice voicing opinions prior to the ex-leader's anticipated detention.

Penning in a major publication, another ally, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “harsh” conclusion to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” time in office and alleged Brazil was about to witness “the largest unfairness in its past”.

“It represents an wrong that eats away the souls of countless of Brazilians,” the former minister said.

Varied Popular Opinion

That may be accurate given the substantial support Bolsonaro maintains on the conservative side. Yet his anticipated jailing has also warmed the hearts of many other people who think he deserves to be imprisoned for planning to block the elected leader from becoming president – and even scheming to have him killed.

Reimont Otoni, a congressman for the incumbent leader's Workers’ party, stated: “Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be put in a hole. Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be put in segregation. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to lack food or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We desire him to get dignified treatment – but dignified handling while incarcerated. He must not continue being his personal jailer for his lifetime.”

The congressman noted how Bolsonaro supporters, who have for a long time applauding the severe handling of inmates, had abruptly woken up to their privileges. “Only now has the far-right – which has always asserted that basic rights were not for offenders – decided to inspect a jail to find out what circumstances are really like,” he said.

“Bolsonaro is a criminal,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he earned “degrading, degrading treatment”.

Likely Prison Facilities

Regardless of talk that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which currently holds about 14,000 detainees, his expected assigned facility appears to be a nearby penitentiary for law enforcement and other “special” inmates known as Papudinha (Small Papuda).

His potential cell are considerably more comfortable than those in the primary facility, although still a world away from the comfort Bolsonaro enjoyed while residing in the spectacular presidential palace, approximately a short distance away.

Based on reports, the room Bolsonaro could likely occupy in Papudinha has about 260 square feet – approximately the dimensions of two parking spaces – and includes a 12 sq metre WC with a water facility and a 130 square foot terrace. “Bolsonaro would be permitted to have a television and also a cooler in his room as long as they were donated by his family,” the report indicated.

Political Reactions

Senator Lucas criticized the speculated proposal to send the former leader to Papuda as “a form of retaliation” on the part of the judicial authority who presided over Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will determine his outcome in the {