By Chantelle Muzanenhamo
Vanessa Mafu, a 15-year-old girl from Zimbabwe suffering from severe autoimmune hepatitis, has been denied a life-saving liver transplant at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital because she is not a South African citizen.
Doctors have confirmed that Vanessa’s liver has been severely damaged, and she urgently requires a transplant to survive. However, hospital policies dictate that only South African citizens are eligible for organ transplants from the country’s national donor list unless they possess a valid visa or work permit.
In a desperate bid to save their daughter, Vanessa’s parents have taken their fight to the Johannesburg High Court. They are seeking a court order to compel the hospital to perform the transplant, which the family is prepared to finance, even if it costs up to R1.5 million.
In court documents, Vanessa’s father, Vuyelwa Ncube, expressed his concerns about the urgency of the situation. He noted that doctors indicated the transplant could involve either a piece of liver from a living donor, typically a family member, or from a deceased donor who has consented to organ donation.
However, when they inquired about deceased donor options, they were told that foreign nationals cannot be placed on the donor list without valid residency documentation.
Ncube is currently awaiting news regarding his application to renew his expired work permit, which complicates matters further.
“The delays in the processing of my documents are not my own but could have fatal consequences for my daughter,” he stated in his affidavit.
He also questioned the legality of the hospital’s policy, stating that no written law prohibits foreigners from receiving organ transplants in South Africa.
Advocate Simba Chitando, the family’s lawyer, condemned the hospital’s refusal as one of the most cruel, inhuman, and blatantly xenophobic acts against a child.
In a troubling development, the family claims that the hospital discharged Vanessa after legal proceedings commenced, a move Chitando described as vindictive. As a result, the Mafu family is now seeking another hospital to stabilize Vanessa while they await a court decision.
Chitando has called on the Zimbabwean community, particularly business leaders, to assist the family in locating and funding a new medical facility for their daughter.