Rottnest Island's haunting past: paradise shadowed by a colonial prison
CNN highlights Rottnest Island (Wadjemup) as a famed Perth-area paradise with a dark legacy: from 1838 to 1902 it operated as a prison for Aboriginal men and boys, housing nearly 4,000 inmates and recording about 373 deaths, many in unmarked graves. The site’s transformation into a tourist hotspot included Tentland, a campsite above burial grounds, prompting modern reconciliation efforts like the Wadjemup Project, memorialization, and culturally guided tours to acknowledge and heal the community’s history while preserving the island’s beauty for visitors.