Robben Island has in the past few years changed from being an infamous incarceration centre to a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located 12 km from Cape Town in the West Cape Province of South Africa, Robben Island was for more than three centuries used as a place for banishment and imprisonment. It was here that political and human rights activists were incarcerated by the rulers of the day to thwart their quest for liberalization.
Apart from being a prison center, Robben Island was also previously (1846-1931) used as a hospital center for such people as lepers and the chronically ill. During World War II (1939-1945), the island also served as a military base.
Although it had been in existence for over three hundred years, Robben Island came into the international limelight in the late 20th century during the apartheid years. This was the era in which South African freedom fighters, including Nelson Mandela - former president of South Africa- and the founding leader of the Pan Africanist Congress, Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, among other leaders were imprisoned. Mandela was sent to Robben Island in 1963 after receiving a life imprisonment and he remained at the 6 sq km island for 27 years.
Robben Island's political detainees shared the facility with common-law prisoners. The prisoners were allowed to send and receive two letters a year, this being their only contact with the outside world. In 1990, Nelson Mandela was released, followed by the remaining political prisoners in 1991. The common law prisoners were later in 1996 transferred to mainland South Africa.
The island was in 1997 converted into a museum - the Robben Island Museum - which today forms a core part of South Africa's heritage. The Robben Island Museum facilitates tourism development, and carries out educational programs for schools and other visitors. The museum also conducts and facilitates more research about the island, while archiving important South Africa historical information. UNESCO declared Robben Island a World Heritage Site in 1999.
According to UNESCO, the declaration of Robben Island as a world heritage site symbolizes the triumph of the human spirit, freedom, and democracy over oppression. South Africa has seven other world heritage sites including the Swartkrans, Sterkfontein, and Kromdraai environs, often known as "the cradle of humanity" due to the discovery of the famous Taung Skull fossil here in 1924.
Apart from the Museum, other attractions in Robben Island are the breeding colonies of bank cormorants, crowned cormorants and Hartlaub's gulls. The island also hosts approximately 5 percent of the global population of African black oystercatchers.
You can get to Robben Island via the ferries that operate from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A waterfront, Cape Town. There are daily ferry departures at 9am, 10am,12pm, 1pm, and 3pm. Once on the island, you can undertake a tour of the former prison to get a glimpse of the life that the political detainees of the 1960's to 90's led there. The prison tours are conducted by some of the former prisoners. A typical Robben Island tour lasts for three and a half hours, including the two rides to and from the island each lasting half an hour.
Apart from being a prison center, Robben Island was also previously (1846-1931) used as a hospital center for such people as lepers and the chronically ill. During World War II (1939-1945), the island also served as a military base.
Although it had been in existence for over three hundred years, Robben Island came into the international limelight in the late 20th century during the apartheid years. This was the era in which South African freedom fighters, including Nelson Mandela - former president of South Africa- and the founding leader of the Pan Africanist Congress, Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe, among other leaders were imprisoned. Mandela was sent to Robben Island in 1963 after receiving a life imprisonment and he remained at the 6 sq km island for 27 years.
Robben Island's political detainees shared the facility with common-law prisoners. The prisoners were allowed to send and receive two letters a year, this being their only contact with the outside world. In 1990, Nelson Mandela was released, followed by the remaining political prisoners in 1991. The common law prisoners were later in 1996 transferred to mainland South Africa.
The island was in 1997 converted into a museum - the Robben Island Museum - which today forms a core part of South Africa's heritage. The Robben Island Museum facilitates tourism development, and carries out educational programs for schools and other visitors. The museum also conducts and facilitates more research about the island, while archiving important South Africa historical information. UNESCO declared Robben Island a World Heritage Site in 1999.
According to UNESCO, the declaration of Robben Island as a world heritage site symbolizes the triumph of the human spirit, freedom, and democracy over oppression. South Africa has seven other world heritage sites including the Swartkrans, Sterkfontein, and Kromdraai environs, often known as "the cradle of humanity" due to the discovery of the famous Taung Skull fossil here in 1924.
Apart from the Museum, other attractions in Robben Island are the breeding colonies of bank cormorants, crowned cormorants and Hartlaub's gulls. The island also hosts approximately 5 percent of the global population of African black oystercatchers.
You can get to Robben Island via the ferries that operate from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A waterfront, Cape Town. There are daily ferry departures at 9am, 10am,12pm, 1pm, and 3pm. Once on the island, you can undertake a tour of the former prison to get a glimpse of the life that the political detainees of the 1960's to 90's led there. The prison tours are conducted by some of the former prisoners. A typical Robben Island tour lasts for three and a half hours, including the two rides to and from the island each lasting half an hour.
About the Author:
Andrew Muigai is the MD of Africapoint.com, a travel agency that provides South Africa tour services and South Africa Lodges reservations among other Africa travel services.
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