Conservative former President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro, recently diagnosed with skin cancer, suffered a new health complication on Monday, prompting an urgent visit from his doctor Cláudio Birolini.
Birolini spent the night at Bolsonaro’s residence in Brasília, where the 70-year-old former President remains under house arrest since August by order of Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes — waiting for the STF to decide in which prison Bolsonaro will serve his 27-year sentence for “crimes against democracy.”
One of Bolsonaro’s sons, Rio de Janeiro Councilman Carlos Bolsonaro, explained in a social media post on Monday evening that he and his family were assessing the need to take Jair Bolsonaro back to the hospital after he experienced a bout of hiccups accompanied by four episodes of vomiting, which the former president described as “the most intense so far.”
“[Former First Lady] Michelle is making him a little more comfortable and calm, while the doctor is already on his way home to assess the situation. Please pray for him,” Councilman Bolsonaro wrote.
Dr. Birolini reportedly arrived at Bolsonaro’s residence around 8:00 p.m. (local time). The doctor treated Bolsonaro and spent the night at the residence, accompanying the former president and monitoring his health throughout the night.
On Tuesday morning, former First Lady Michelle Bolsonaro announced on social media that Jair Bolsonaro was doing well after the Monday health crisis, and thanked Bolsonaro’s supporters for their prayers.
“Thank God this crisis is over and everything is back to normal,” Councilman Carlos Bolsonaro said in a follow-up post. “His complaint is heartbreaking: ‘Who can stand these constant hiccups? It’s enough to kill anyone from exhaustion!’”
Former President Jair Bolsonaro suffers from recurring complications in his digestive system stemming from a failed assassination attempt in September 2018, when a man identified as Adelio Bispo de Oliveira stabbed him during a presidential campaign rally event. The stabbing caused significant damage to Bolsonaro’s stomach and intestines. De Oliveira, once a registered member of the Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL), told police at the time that he believed “God” had tasked him with killing Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro has undergone several surgeries in the past seven years to fix the immediate damage and subsequent complications from the initial stabbing. In April, Bolsonaro underwent a 12-hour surgery to treat an intestinal subocclusion, a complication caused by the past surgeries. Bolsonaro’s medical team described April’s surgery as the longest and most complex since the emergency 2018 surgery after the stabbing.
Brazil’s top court, the STF, sentenced Bolsonaro to 27 years and three months in prison for allegedly conspiring with some 35 others to stage a “coup” and overturn the results of the 2022 presidential election in which a then-incumbent Bolsonaro narrowly lost against current radical leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
The STF accused Bolsonaro of having played a role in the January 8, 2023, riot in Brasília even though Bolsonaro was not physically present in Brazil at the time the incident happened. According to the STF, the purported “coup” plot also involved a plot to “poison” Lula.
Last week, Lula defended Bolsonaro’s conviction as an “example” from Brazil to the world during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
“Authoritarianism is strengthened when we fail to act in the face of arbitrary acts,” Lula claimed during his speech. “When international society falters in defending peace, sovereignty, and the rule of law, the consequences are tragic throughout the world.”
Weeks before the sentencing, STF Justice de Moraes ordered the Brazilian Federal Police to place Bolsonaro under a strict house arrest and constant police surveillance. De Moraes also forbade Jair Bolsonaro from using any kind of phone device. Due to the conditions of his house arrest, Bolsonaro’s legal team must justify each of Bolsonaro’s hospital visits to the top court, including emergency ones.
Last month, Bolsonaro visited the DF Star Hospital in Brasília after he experienced an episode of vomiting, dizziness, low blood pressure, and presyncope. He also underwent the surgical removal of eight skin lesions on his body as well as other medical procedures and tests.
At the time, Dr. Birolini described Bolsonaro’s health to reporters as “fragile” and explained that the former president suffered from iron deficiency (anemia) and pneumonia in addition to other conditions such as high blood pressure and gastroesophageal reflux.
Hours later, Biroloni announced that medical tests performed on the removed skin lesions found the presence of squamous cell carcinoma, an “intermediate” form of skin cancer, in two of the eight removed lesions.
The “coup” trial is the most significant on a lengthy list of judicial proceedings against Jair Bolsonaro since he left office in January 2023. That list includes a now-dismissed probe on allegations that he falsified coronavirus vaccination records and an indictment on allegations of illegally selling Saudi jewels. Days before the “coup” trial sentence, Brazil’s federal police filed a fourth indictment against Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo Bolsonaro on allegations of “coercion” against the top court in the then-ongoing trial.
Days after the STF sentenced Jair Bolsonaro, STF Justice Flávio Dino opened a new inquiry against the former president over “irregular practices” allegedly committed during his administration throughout the handling of the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic. The announcement came hours after a Brazilian Federal court imposed a roughly $189,000 fine on Bolsonaro for allegedly engaging in “recreational racism” during his presidency.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.
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