San Francisco Frontiers - Brazil Senate advances bill that could cut Bolsonaro jail term

Bolsonaro, 70, was imprisoned in November after his conviction for a scheme to prevent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from taking office after the 2022 election.

After months of jockeying by his supporters in Congress for some sort of amnesty for the far-right leader, the conservative-controlled lower house approved a bill last week that would change how sentences are calculated for certain crimes.

The Senate's judicial committee on Wednesday approved the controversial bill with a comfortable majority, moving it forward to the full plenary for a vote.

The legislation could see Bolsonaro serve a little over two years in jail.

Under current rules, he is expected to serve about eight years of his sentence before being eligible for a looser regime, according to an estimation by a sentencing tribunal.

Bolsonaro's oldest son, the senator Flavio Bolsonaro -- who the former president anointed as the candidate of the right in 2026 elections -- called for the plenary to "address this issue once and for all."

The bill provoked protests in cities across Brazil on Sunday, where demonstrators chanted "no amnesty" and held up banners reading: "Congress, enemy of the people."

Political forces are more evenly balanced in the Senate.

Nevertheless, the bill was approved in committee with 17 votes in favor and seven against.

Centrist Senator Renan Calheiros slammed the vote as a "farce" and walked out of the session after accusing the government's allies in parliament of letting the vote take place in exchange for support for a budget initiative as part of a backroom deal.

- Fears over who will benefit -

The author of the legislation, deputy Paulinho da Forca, said it was a "gesture of reconciliation" in a polarized country.

Senators have amended the wording of the bill to limit its benefit, after fears that it could ease punishment for a wide variety of criminals.

It is specifically aimed at benefiting those convicted as part of the coup plot, as well as more than 100 Bolsonaro supporters who were imprisoned for their role in January 2023 riots against the seats of government in Brasilia, shortly after Lula took office.

Senator Sergio Moro, Bolsonaro's former justice minister, hailed the fact that the bill would manage "to get those people out of prison, which is the most important thing right now."

Bolsonaro is serving his sentence in a special room at a police facility in the capital Brasilia, after a dramatic start to his jail term when he took a soldering iron to his ankle monitoring bracelet while under house arrest.

If the bill is passed by the Senate, it will head to the desk of Lula, who has vowed to veto it, saying Bolsonaro "must pay" for his crimes.

"This bill is destined to be vetoed" by Lula, said Senator Randolfe Rodrigues of Lula's leftist Workers' Party (PT).

However, Congress has the last word and can overturn the president's veto.

Bolsonaro was convicted for a scheme to stop Lula from taking office after his razor-thin loss in a bitter 2022 election that highlighted stark political divisions in Brazil.

The plot allegedly involved a plan to assassinate Lula, his vice president Geraldo Alckmin and Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes.

Prosecutors said the scheme failed because of a lack of support from military top brass.

G.Miller--SFF