Islands known for hosting prisoners, dissidents or refugees.

Alcatraz island (The Rock)

Alcatraz is a small island that served as a federal prison for 29 years. The strong currents around the island and cold water temperatures made escape nearly impossible, and the prison became one of the most notorious in American history. The island measures 511 meters by 180 meters.

Galapagos Islands

The Galapagos Islands - best known for Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution - served as a penal colony in the 1940s and 50s.

Christmas Island

The Christmas Island - part of Australian overseas territory - served as a detention center for refugees till 2018.

Bhasan Char

Bhasan Char is an island formed in 2006 by silt deposits. The Government of Bangladesh has announced plans to resettle 100,000 Rohingya refugees.

Robinson Crusoe Island

The Robinson Crusoe Island, off the coast of Chile, was home to the marooned sailor Alexander Selkirk, who at least partially inspired novelist Daniel Defoe’s fictional Robinson Crusoe in his 1719 novel, although the novel is explicitly set in the Caribbean.

Robben Island

The Robben Island, off the coast of Cape Town, is best known as the site where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years.

St. Helena

St. Helena is a remote island most famous for being the site of Napolean’s second exile.