Robben Island

On April 5, I was able to take a boat on an excursion to Robben Island. Robben Island is a fairly short boat ride from Cape Town Harbor and was a prison, particularly a political prison from many years. The prison is now closed and it is now a national estate and world heritage center.

This site had a good description: Robben Island, the unique symbol of “the triumph of the human spirit over adversity, suffering and injustice” with a rich 500 year old multi-layered history, is visited every year by thousands of people eager to understand and honour the important aspects of South Africa’s history that the Island represents.

The whole experience for the visitor is very well managed. Busses meet everyone arriving to the island on the boat.

We got onto busses for a tour of the island. We saw the houses of some people living on the island (mostly those involved in the museum operations).

One interesting photo stop allowed us to take pictures of Table Mountain and Cape Town across the water. Those prisoners held on Robben Island who got out of the cell blocks, might see Table Mountain, looking so close, but so far away. Our guide said that one of the first things many of the political prisoners requested on their release was a trip up Table Mountain to celebrate their freedom.

We also stopped for photos at the Limestone Quarry, where political prisoners worked. “The prisoners who worked at the quarry over the centuries included Nelson Mandela. He worked there for 13 years. There was no real need for the island’s limestone during the time of Mandela. Prisoners would break up the stone and carry it to one end of the quarry one day and then back the next – the work was really just to keep them busy. As a result of working with the white limestone every day, Mandela suffered from eye problems.”

The cave shown is a place they could retreat to for a lunch break to be out of earshot of the prison guards. “Mandela and his fellow prisoners used their time in the quarry to educate themselves in everything from literature, philosophy, history and current events.”

After the bus ride around the island, we visited the prison where many prisoners were kept during the apartheid era.

We toured the cell block where Nelson Mandela was kept in solitary for eighteen years.

The best part of this experience for me was the intentional way each busload was assigned a different guide for the tour of the prison complex. All of these guides had been held in Robben Island as political prisoners.

Here is a picture of our guide, who shared his experience, adding a lot to the depth of this place. He explained various parts of the prison as we passed. We then settled into seats into Cell Block F, where our guide was imprisoned for many years, for a more in depth discussion.

I could feel something different about the intentional way this Robben Island facility was developed. It felt like an attempt to confront some of the past. And, this site says that is intentional: “During his administration, Nelson Mandela—elected president in 1994—considered Robben Island as a symbol of reconciliation among the several South African communities and took prompt action to have the site repurposed, according to the requirements of the democratic transition underway.”

I am sure that I can’t even begin to talk about the reconciliation process in South Africa. Like any attempt for a society to confront and move forward from past trauma, I’m sure it is complex and will be going on for many years. At the same time, I was grateful to find a place where at least the reality of the past was talked about.