{"id":95724,"date":"2026-02-11T14:30:40","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T14:30:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home"},"modified":"2026-02-11T14:43:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T14:43:59","slug":"from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home","title":{"rendered":"From Secret Meetings to Reform at Mandela’s Prison Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>President Cyril Ramaphosa has recounted the many secret meetings and weeks of careful planning that took place ahead of Nelson Mandela\u2019s release 36 years ago.<\/p>\n

In an exclusive interview with Eyewitness News at Mandela\u2019s prison house at Drakenstein Correctional Centre on Wednesday, Ramaphosa recalls there were mixed emotions ahead of the much-anticipated release.<\/p>\n

President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke to EWN in the kitchen of Nelson Mandela\u2019s prison house on the premises of the Drakenstein Correctional Centre.<\/p>\n

Ramaphosa was last here for strategic planning meetings with his political mentor, preparing for his homecoming.<\/p>\n

“So being back here brings back all those memories as they just flash back.”<\/p>\n

President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Nelson Mandela Rules Training Academy during its official opening on Wednesday 11 February 2026 at the Drakenstein Correctional Facility. Picture: GCIS.<\/p>\n

As the president walks through the prison property, a prison museum curator points out the holes in the walls and garden furniture where Apartheid police once hid recording devices to track Mandela\u2019s conversations.<\/p>\n

“Like a bird, Madiba could not be caged; he had to fly out.”<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, Ramaphosa returns to Drakenstein Correctional Centre to launch the Nelson Mandela Rules Training Academy.<\/p>\n

Here, prison officers will receive training on, among other things, the humane handling of offenders.<\/p>\n

The centre is unveiled on the 36th anniversary of Mandela\u2019s release.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. President Cyril Ramaphosa has recounted the many secret meetings and weeks of careful planning that took place ahead of Nelson Mandela\u2019s release 36 years ago. In an exclusive interview with Eyewitness News at Mandela\u2019s prison house at Drakenstein Correctional Centre on Wednesday, Ramaphosa recalls there were mixed emotions ahead of the much-anticipated […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":95723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[275],"class_list":["post-95724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nFrom Secret Meetings to Reform at Mandela's Prison Home - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"President Cyril Ramaphosa has recounted the many secret meetings and weeks of careful planning that took place ahead of ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"From Secret Meetings to Reform at Mandela's Prison Home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President Cyril Ramaphosa has recounted the many secret meetings and weeks of careful planning that took place ahead of ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-11T14:30:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-11T14:43:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/02\/sm_1770808412.623401.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"From Secret Meetings to Reform at Mandela’s Prison Home\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-11T14:30:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-11T14:43:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\"},\"wordCount\":243,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/02\/sm_1770808412.623401.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/from-secret-meetings-to-reform-at-mandelas-prison-home\",\"name\":\"From Secret Meetings to Reform at Mandela's Prison Home - 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