'A triumph of the new South Africa over the old': Heritage and nation-building in post-apartheid South Africa, 1994--1999

Nelson Mandela's presidency, marked especially by the proceedings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, fostered a context in which the South African heritage industry was encouraged to promote the core values of reconciliation, unity and diversity, the underpinning of the president's nation-building project. District Six and Robben Island Museums are assessed as two of the most prominent heritage sites for the commemoration of apartheid in South Africa. Despite their differences---District Six began as a local museum with little government funding, while Robben Island was destined to be South Africa's most recognised heritage site and its largest recipient of government monies---both institutions were transformed into sites that promoted the government's vision of the new South Africa. Ultimately, the needs of the nation-building project marginalised the problems of nostalgia, romanticisation, omission and silencing that occurred at both institutions between 1994 and 1999.