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South Africa Travel + Tourism Guide: Robben Island

Robben Island

Robben Island's most famous prisoner was, of course, Nelson Mandela, who was held on the island from 1963 until 1982. Mandela's years on Robben Island are revealed in his book A Long Walk to Freedom. He was confined to a small, bare cell and forced to do hard labour at a lime quarry. Mandela was allowed only one visitor every six months, and one letter, often rendered unintelligible by the prison censors. At one time during his long imprisonment, Mandela and his fellow prisoners were forced to dig a trench and then climb in to it, whereupon the white warders would urinate on the prisoners and order them to fill in the trench. On the occasion of Mandela's first dinner as President of South Africa he invited those very men who had abused him.

Robben Island, 7km off the coast of Cape Town and the Waterfront, is a cold and inhospitable place. Measuring 6 square kilometres, the island had long been used as a prison and a place of exile, first by the early Dutch settlers, then by the British and finally by the Afrikaners.

The Dutch imprisoned political opponents here from their various colonies as did the British who exiled the leaders of the Xhosa rebellions of the early 19th century. As well as prisoners, the island became a place of confinement for the mentally and physically ill, prostitutes and lepers.

Robert Sobukwe, the leader of the Pan African Congress was held in solitary confinement on the island for nine years and was forbidden to speak with the other prisoners. Other notable inmates include Jacob Zuma, Walter Sisulu and Govan Mbeki (Thabo Mbeki's father).

Mandela was housed in the B-Section of the Maximum Security Prison and his cell is kept as it was when he occupied it. Tours of the island include Mandela's cell in B-Section, A-Section with personal objects of the prisoners and a Smuggled Camera Exhibition with images the prisoners took of themselves with cameras secretly brought in. The Living Legacy tour involves ex-prisoners describing and answering questions about their lives in the jail. Tours also include a guided bus tour of the island with stops at the the Muslim shrine, or kramat, built in honour of Tuan Guru, a Muslim cleric incarcerated here by the Dutch in the 18th century and at various points of scenic interest including the lime quarry.

All political prisoners were released from Robben Island in 1991 with the last common law prisoners transferred in 1996. The prison became a museum a year later and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.

The film More Than Just A Game celebrates a football league formed by the prisoners to keep up their spirits during their time inside.

Recently Robben Island has come under threat from a huge population of up to 25,000 feral rabbits, which are decimating the vegetation on the island and burrowing under historic buildings. A population of 500 fallow deer also needs to have its numbers culled to maintain the island's fragile eco-system.

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Robben Island Access

Robben Island
Tel 021 413 4233 / 37

The standard tour to Robben Island is 3 and a half hours in duration, including the two 30 minute ferry rides to the island. Ferries depart at 9am, 11am, 1pm and 3pm, weather permitting, from the V & A Waterfront in Cape Town. It is recommended to book early. The ticket sales office is located at the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A Waterfront or can be booked online.

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