Constitution Hill is, in many ways, a model for what a multi-faceted memorial site can be. In supplanting a former political prison with the home base of a famously progressive constitution, the site honors the painful sacrifices of the past while serving as an active symbol of human rights and democracy for the future. In addition, the Constitution Hill project aspires to create jobs, promote tourism, instill civic pride, provide public space, employ environmentally sustainable architecture, and foster urban renewal within a blighted neighborhood.
Precisely because Constitution Hill is such an ambitious and complex site, it presents many special challenges. In a 2003 paper for South Africa’s Center for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, Ereshnee Naidu noted several considerations that should be heeded if Constitution Hill is to succeed as a site of memory and justice. “To ensure that the voices collected represent the experiences of all those that have come in contact with the Fort,” Naidu wrote, “it is necessary that the national drive to collect stories engage with all South Africans. The process should represent the voices of 'ordinary' people who were incarcerated on the site, and not just the famous personalities, such as Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi, who have been known to be imprisoned on the site.” Has Constitution Hill succeeded in telling the stories of ordinary South Africans? Naidu also notes that Constitution Hill has unique potential as a true site of reconciliation, given that such a wide range of people, both black and white, had been imprisoned there over the decades. Has Constitution Hill lived up to that potential?
References
Merwe, Clinton David van der, and Zarina Patel. “Understandings of Urban Regeneration, Heritage and Environmental Justice at Constitution Hill, Johannesburg.” Urban Forum 16, no. 2/3 (April-September 2005): 244-258.
Naidu, Ereshnee. “A Case Study of Constitution Hill.” The Center for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, 2003.
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Design of Constitution Hill
After it was decided, in 1995, to move the Constitutional Court to the site of the Old Fort, a major international competition was held in 1998 to determine the design of Constitution Hill. The winner was OMM Design Workshop, in collaboration with Urban Solutions, led by principal architects Janin Maojada, Andrew Makin, and Paul Wygers. In 2004, the Constitutional Court moved into its new home at Constitutional Hill, and in 2006, construction for the entire complex was completed.
As part of the construction project, most of the old cells were restored to look as they had when the site was a functioning prison. The roof of the passageway into Number Four is inscribed with quotes from Nelson Mandela. As visitors enter the communal cells, they hear recordings of “Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika,” South Africa’s national anthem. In the section of the museum that was formerly the women’s prison, a shopping bag commemorates the black women who were arrested for buying food in white areas without a pass. In one cell hangs the white wedding dress belonging to Nikiwe Deborah Matshoba, who was arrested on the way to her own wedding.
The prison also contains a response room, where visitors are encouraged to document their reactions and can view videos of former prisoners returning to the site. In addition, a cell in the fort was remade into a children’s room that holds three-hour classroom programs.
References
Constitution Hill, official website.
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“Constitution Hill.” Johannesburg Development Agency.
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“Constitution Hill: Essence of SA.” City of Johannesburg.
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“Making the cell walls talk.” The Economist, August 13, 2005.
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