🔗 Share this article Jailhouse Surprise: Brazil's FormerPresident Jair Bolsonaro Confronts Life in Prison He contested justice and justice triumphed. Sixty days after being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “destroy” the nation's democracy, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro finally looks jail-bound. Imminent Imprisonment The found-guilty instigator – who has been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of legal procedures and challenges play out – is widely expected to be imprisoned in the near future, amid mounting rumors that he will be sent to a notorious maximum security facility. Historical Statements on Prisoners Over Bolsonaro’s 40-year political career, the conservative former military man showed minimal sympathy for the country's inmates. “What’s the need to offer those dirtbags a easy time?” he previously wondered. “They ought to simply be fucked, full-fucking-stop. That’s what I reckon.” On another occasion, Bolsonaro declared: “Should you not wish to wind up there, the only thing required is not rape, kidnap or rob.” Prison Destination Discussion Yet the possibility of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda top-security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, a group of four this week toured the prison in an apparent effort to dissuade the judiciary from transferring him there. Izalci Lucas, a senator from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was part of that quartet, said he predicted the 70-year-old leader to be jailed in the next 10 days and worried his assigned prison could be Papuda. The senator argued Bolsonaro’s serious digestive ailments – the consequence of a life-threatening stabbing during the 2018 election race – meant it would be hazardous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His health is highly critical. He cannot to manage if they move him to Papuda … It will be dreadful,” he commented, who also worried about overcrowded cells and the condition of prison meals. While visiting Papuda, Lucas noted seeing cells holding 40 detainees: “That’s practically one square meter per prisoner. “We spoke to the inmates and they protest, naturally, of the terrible cuisine,” remarked the senator. Allies Voice Concerns Lucas is not the only voice voicing opinions before the former president’s predicted imprisonment. Writing in a leading daily, one more backer, the ex- government official Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “brutal” end to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” public service and asserted Brazil was about to experience “the greatest wrong in its record”. “This is an unfairness that erodes the hearts of many of Brazilians,” the former minister said. Divided General Response It is possibly accurate considering the substantial support Bolsonaro holds on the right-wing. However his expected incarceration has also gladdened the spirits of millions other people who believe he should be incarcerated for conspiring to prevent his successor from taking power – and also conspiring to have him killed. The lawmaker, a politician for the current president's political party, stated: “Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be placed in a dungeon. No one wants Bolsonaro to be placed in isolation. Not a soul wishes Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to lie on concrete. We want him to get proper care – but respectful treatment while incarcerated. He cannot carry on being his own prison warden for his entire life.” The congressman noted how Bolsonaro allies, who have spent years applauding the severe handling of convicts, had abruptly become aware to their entitlements. “Just now has the extreme right – which has always argued that civil liberties were not for offenders – opted to tour a prison to find out what conditions are truly like,” he said. “Bolsonaro is a lawbreaker,” he affirmed, but that did not mean he merited “degrading, demeaning handling”. Likely Incarceration Conditions Regardless of talk that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which now contains about thousands of inmates, his expected location appears to be a nearby jail for officers and other “particular” prisoners referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda). The accommodations are much more adequate than those in the larger jail, although nonetheless a far cry from the comfort Bolsonaro experienced while occupying the impressive leader's home, around 20 kilometers away. According to reports, the room Bolsonaro could likely occupy in Papudinha is about 24 square meters – approximately the size of vehicle spaces – and contains a 12 square meter restroom with a bathing area and a 12 sq metre veranda. “Bolsonaro would be allowed to have a TV and even a small fridge in his room as long as they were supplied by his family,” information stated. Partisan Comments The lawmaker condemned the rumoured proposal to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “an act of revenge” on the part of the presiding magistrate who led Bolsonaro’s legal case and will rule on his future in the {