Island of Punishment on lake bunyonyi, the punishment island.

Island of Punishment on lake bunyonyi, the punishment island.

Uganda’s Punishment Island

Lake Bunyonyi is a punishment island.

Uganda’s Punishment Island – Investigate Punishment Island. Bunyonyi Lake: Punishment Island, also known as Akampane Island, is one of the most beautiful islands in Lake Bunyonyi and one of the most fascinating sites to visit due to its thrilling legendry narrative.

You will have to paddle for around 30 minutes to reach this island, which appears to be easier to reach than previously. Punishment Island Uganda is a little, isolated island with only two trees. One tree appears to be dry, and the other has endured so long that its flora is giving forth its last breath.

There are other islands near the punishment island Lake Bunyonyi that are very crowded with residents who have established their coexistence with tourism establishments. Because of the bizarre myth about this island in the past, no one would be happy if they were informed they were heading to Akampane Island because it was referred to as a bad island.

Historically, any girl who became pregnant in the community before marrying was viewed as a misfortune and someone who had brought shame to the family; thus, the punishment decided for such girls was to ride them in the canoe boat taking them to Akampane Island, where they were always thrown there, abandoned without food or water for about four nights, and sometimes left to die.

This acted as a warning to others not to repeat the same mistake. However, the fortunate ones were picked up by fishermen who assisted in their rescue, while others opted to marry them.

This ancient ritual was carried out by the Bakiga people, who live near Bunyonyi Lake. According to their traditional culture and beliefs, a girl was only supposed to get pregnant when married, and if a family married off a virgin, it meant much wealth and a lot of pride was given to the family, which is one of the reasons that they were able to get rid of the pregnant girls because they did not want to bring shame upon them. Girls did not know how to swim long ago, thus when abandoned on this island, the only alternative was to drown or starve to death due to famine, hunger, and frost.

Because of the primitiveness of the population as well as the remoteness of the location, this customary practice persisted even after the arrival of colonialists and missionaries who attempted to put an end to this violent and vicious activity.

However, the punishment that resulted in the death of another pregnant girl was a blessing in disguise for those boys or men who had long wished to marry the girl but had the financial means. These took use of the opportunity to paddle up to the island, pick up these females, and married them for free with no dowry given. As a result, not all of the girls died, but the boys or men would transport them to another island, where they would generally begin their new life.

When you join a tour to this incredible Island, you will have the opportunity to visit neighboring islands where you will meet some ladies who appear to be live witnesses or victims of the girls abandoned on this Island but subsequently saved by mysterious persons.

Though the girl who became pregnant was given such a punishment, the man or boy who gave the girl pregnancy nothing happened to them and the girl mentioned them, so it is believed that it is these same men who followed them and picked them up from the Island to go and start their own new life.

Getting to the punishment island was simple if you were staying at any of the resorts located surrounding Lake Bunyonyi.

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