Robben Island
12 km off the coast of Cape Town South Africa lies Robben Island which is best known as the prison that housed Nelson Mandela as well as the leader and founder of the Pan African Congress and many other political prisoners who opposed the Apartheid regime. Some of them spending around 25 years imprisoned on the Island.
Robben Island in South Africa was used for over 400 years as a place of exile and imprisonment where people regarded as social pariahs such as lepers were sent presumably to hospital but because of the remote situation resulted in virtual imprisonment. Since the mid 17th century when the Dutch settled the Cape the island has been used primarily as a prison.
In the 17th century Robben Island was used as a hospital for isolating infections cases both because it was secure and a healthy environment which could help in facilitating a cure for the patients. At the same time it was used as a prison and as there were illnesses that were regarded as incurable such as leprosy, mental illness and others.
Today it is a UNESCO world heritage site and a museum with a number of special exhibitions. In 1997 Robben Island was declared a National Monument and a National Museum, and in 1997 an Associated institution of the Department of Arts, Culture, Science and Technology.
Many Thousands of years ago Robben Island was joined to the Cape mainland before the sea channel covered the land between and separated it from the mainland. At that time people lived on the Island.
There is a shrine on the island called the Kramat that was built as a memorial to Pangerau Chakra Deningrat. He was an Asian Prince of Madura and one of several other Muslims who defied the attempts of the Dutch to colonize Indonesia and was banished to Robben Island in 1682. He died there in 1754 and his body was eventually returned to his son in Indonesia.
There are ferries that take tourists to Robben Island from the waterfront in Cape Town and it is also possible to go there by helicopter.
