Fifteen-year-old Vanessa Mafu urgently needs a liver transplant to survive her autoimmune hepatitis, which has advanced to liver cirrhosis. However, bureaucratic obstacles are preventing her from receiving the life-saving procedure. Because Vanessa’s parents are Zimbabwean and living in South Africa without formal immigration documentation, doctors at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital have reportedly informed her that she is ineligible to receive a liver from a deceased South African donor.

In response, Vanessa’s mother, Vuyelwa Ncube, has initiated legal action by filing an urgent application in the Johannesburg High Court. The hospital, the ministers of health and home affairs, the Gauteng MEC for health, and a treating doctor have been named as respondents in the case.

In her affidavit, Ncube explained that a doctor told her Vanessa cannot undergo the transplant unless she provides a valid visa or permit. She emphasized the urgency of the matter, stating that her daughter’s critical condition cannot wait for a hearing on the ordinary court roll.