Robben Island

Jun 29, 2016
3 min read

Before coming on my trip, I was told by one of my favorite professors that I needed to read the book Invictus. He was so passionate about it that two copies of the book were delivered to my parent's home, one for me and one for Emmeline. I started reading the book during my first flight, and it became so clear to me why he was adamant about us reading this book.

After this experience, I will probably always read a book that tells a story about the country that I am traveling to. Before you visit the Anne Frank house, read her diary. If you have the chance to travel to Iran, read Persepolis. When you travel to Robben Island, read Invictus. Putting your mind into a new perspective through the story that the author paints is something that brings powerful context to your travels. Nelson Mandela was no longer just a famous leader to me; he became a subject of true fascination that I suddenly felt a deep connection to.

When signing up for the "museum tour" of the island that Mandela and dozens of other prisoners were held captive, I did not expect to have the entire island itself be my tour. We drove to the "limestone quary" where prisoners were forced mine the quary for not actual purpose than to do purposeless labor. The limestone damaged peoples' eyes and lungs -- Mandela physically could not cry because dust filled his tear ducts. We toured the prison cells and heard the stories of how and why people were sentenced to up to 20 years of prison time on Robben Island.

Two stories in particular stuck with me.

First, many Black Africans had to carry a "dompas" (which literally translated to "dumb pass"), which was a required identification card that had to be shown to an officer whenever prompted to. If you did not have your pass with you when approached, you owed approximately three months of wages, or six months of jail time. On March 21st, thousands of black Africans rallied together to protest the injustice of the dompas, which is now remembered as the "Sharpeville Massacre." Police shot and killed 69 Africans. Police stations were overloaded with protestors. Hundreds were jailed for treason and sabotage.

Second, I was moved by tour guide who went by "Sparks," and spent eight years on Robben Island. He was never called by his first or last name, but rather "5683." He was convicted for "terrorism" on account of recruiting people to the ANC (African National Council) to fight for Black African rights during apartheid. He was put into "D-cell" with 60 people. Two toilets. Three showers. 4am wake up. He was segregated with other black political prisoners. For example, non-black prisoners were aloud to wear long sleeves, long pants, socks, shoes, and a jacket. Black prisoners were given shorts, short sleeves, no socks, no pants, and no jacket. With no glass covering the cell's windows, rain and wind would make the cells unbearably cold, and many people extracted fatal diseases or became very sick in the winter time.

If someone did not follow a rule, they were put into in the "C-Section," also referred to as the punishment room. A prisoner would experience one of the following punishments:

1) A beating by sticks, whips, kicking, or punching

2) Solitary confinement all day with no food or water

3) Only soft porridge for 30-days, or essentially forced starvation

Hearing all of these facts and stories were disturbing and heartbreaking, but invaluable. It opened my eyes to the sick injustice that occurred during the apartheid period, but also drew many correlations to injustice in the United States and other tragic historical events. I was baffled at how Mandela himself went through this lifestyle for twenty years and came out as a transformational leader for South Africa. Honestly, seeing Mandela's cell was a surreal experience that is really hard to put into words. To see the inhumane circumstances he was in while knowing how lively and passionate of a leader he continued to be is mind-blowing to say the least. If you get a chance to travel to South Africa, you need to visit Robben Island. You won't regret it.

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