The Island

 Possibly the #1 attraction in Cape Town in Robben Island.  Like San Francisco’s Alcatraz, this island served as a prison before being turned into a national park in the 1990’s. Unlike Alcatraz, this prison goes back centuries with the imprisonment of both actual criminals and those that fought against colonial rule. Many kings of the african people who led their people in battle were imprisoned as far back as the 1700’s. The island also served as a leper colony 1800’s and was fortified with artillery as part of the defense of South Africa during World War II. The prison gained its international notoriety in the 1960’s as the place of interment for those who spoke out against the policies of apartheid which were the law of the land at that time.

  From the V&A we took a boat across the bay to the island. The ride only took about 20 minutes; we were lucky to have a sunny day with little wind providing an enjoyable trip. Upon our arrival  we were first taken on a bus tour around the island. We saw the village where the prison guards had lived, the leper cemetery and the limestone and bluestone mines where the prisoners worked each day. We

the lighthouse

paused at the lighthouse, built in 1865 to warn passing ships of the dangerous rocks surrounding the island. When we passed the minimum security prison our guide informed us that this was for convicted criminals; maximum security we reserved for political criminals. As we continued our drive we were fortunate to see a springbok and a leopard tortoise. The bus tour lasted about an hour. It was now time to go into the actual maximum security compound.

Our guide points to a picture of himself being release

  We were met outside the double row of razor wire topped fences by our guide. He was a former political prisoner who had been given a death sentence for politically motivated sabotage. The end of apartheid also overturned his conviction. He was released after serving ten years. We were taken to a large cell where up to 50 men on death row were held together. Here we sat and heard stories of daily life in the prison. Next we moved on to the cells of individuals who were considered to dangerous to be with others. the danger was not from their actions but from their words. Our last stop was the cell of Nelson Mandela, future president of South Africa who served 17 years of his imprisonment on the island.

Mandelas cell

  Sometimes we are so busy leading our lives that we don’t realize historic events are happening if not in front of us but during our lifetimes. The freedoms that we take for granted and sometime abuse in the United States were cause for lengthy imprisonment or even death, not centuries ago but at the end of the 20th century. Robben Island stands as a testament to those who fought and sacrificed to stop actual abuse of government and oppression of people. I can only end by asking what is the price of freedom and would I be willing to pay it? The men of Robben Island knew their answer.