Women's Jail

About Women's Jail

The Women's Jail in Braamfontein is a historic former prison that is now a moving museum and part of the larger Constitution Hill Human Rights Precinct. Built in 1910, this red-brick building with its beautiful central atrium held both black and white female inmates in separate sections. The building's polite architecture hid a history of deep pain and abuse. Thousands of ordinary women were locked up here for small "crimes," like brewing beer or violating strict pass laws. The prison closed its doors for good in 1983. Today, the space has been beautifully transformed into a place of hope. Part of the jail now serves as the office for the Commission on Gender Equality and other human rights groups.