Apartheid Museum
| Apartheid Museum | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Apartheid Museum | |
| Established | 2001 |
| Location |
Johannesburg,  South Africa |
| Coordinates | 26°14′15″S 28°00′32″E / 26.2376°S 28.0090°E |
| Type | Specialized museums |
| Website | http://www.apartheidmuseum.org |
The Apartheid Museum is a museum complex in Johannesburg, South Africa dedicated to illustrating apartheid and the 20th century history of South Africa. The structure pictured here is owned by Gold Reef - the Casino Company.
History
The South African government created a process to grant casino licenses, and established an agency called the Gambling Board. As a part of any bid to build a casino in South Africa, developers are required to demonstrate how their casino would attract tourism and stimulate job growth.
A consortium, called Akani eGoli, put in a bid to build a casino in Gold Reef City whose plans included a complex called Freedom Park.[1] Their bid was successful, and space was created for the complex next to Gold Reef City Casino. The name of Freedom Park was later changed The Apartheid Museum at Freedom Park leading to the name controversy and legal action. The construction costs of the Apartheid Museum were around 80 million Rand, which was paid for by Akani eGoli.
The museum was registered as a Section 21[2] company, which means that it was incorporated not for profit, with an independent board of trustees. The company is separate from Akani eGoli, which has leased the museum to the Section 21 company for the duration of its casino licence. The museum therefore relies on donations, contributions, and sponsorships to sustain its growth.
Visitors Information
Open from 9am-5pm, the Museum is closed Mondays, Good Friday and Christmas Day. Admission costs R55 for adults and R40 for pensioners, students and children. An audio guide is available. Guided tours are an additional R5 per person and must be booked in advance. If you proceed at a reasonable pace you should be able to view and engage with the permanent exhibition in 2 hours. The museum also has an ongoing programme of temporary exhibitions so add an extra 15 minutes to your visit for this. There is a coffee shop and bookshop. A proportion of the museum's exhibitions are outside and will be wet if it is raining.
Name controversy
The name Apartheid Museum was registered as a trademark in 1990 by Mike Stainbank. When the initially proposed Africa Freedom Park was renamed to The Apartheid Museum at Freedom Park Stainbank took legal action against Akani Egoli, but Mike was denied justice by the South African Judicial. Stainbank maintains that the verdict was unfair. The twin brothers who developed the museum known as The Kroks brothers, raised money from selling Skin Whitening Chemicals to black people, which according to Proud Majilah an Activist, is believed to be a direct contradiction of what the museum really stands for.
See also
References
External links
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