On the inside Support falls as Bolsonaro begins his jail sentence

A few hours before Jair Bolsonaro was ordered to start his 27-year coup sentence in a parking space-sized room, Arley Xavier stood outside the former president's new home putting a brave face on his leader's bind.

- Tom Phillips BRASÍLIA

"It's not over. There's still so much Jair Messias Bolsonaro needs to do here," insisted the 21-year-old activist, urging conservatives to rise up against Bolsonaro's imprisonment by flocking to the capital, Brasília, to protest.

But there was no sign of a rightwing rebellion last week as Bolsonaro languished in his room on a federal police base. Xavier was one of only about two dozen protesters outside as the disgraced politician faced up to a future of isolation inside.

Few believe the imprisonment of Bolsonaro and five co-conspirators - a sixth fled through the Amazon to the US is curtains for Brazil's far right.

Followers hope Bolsonaro will receive an amnesty or pardon, particularly if a conservative wins next year's presidential election.

But the lethargic response to Bolsonaro's incarceration has caused some to wonder if his grip over the Brazilian right has been shattered.

According to one report, the 70-year-old politician could be banned from seeking office until he is 105. Bolsonaro's son Eduardo Bolsonaro, a congressman, has lived in the US since February and faces arrest if he returns home because of a supreme court investigation into allegations he attempted to interfere in his father's coup trial.