Beauty queen Chidimma Adetshina faces deportation from South Africa despite claims of being born there

Adetshina, whose mother has Mozambican roots and father is Nigerian, maintains she was born in South Africa and feels unfairly targeted. Her identity documents were revoked after questions about her citizenship arose during her participation in the 2024 Miss South Africa contest, after which she left the country. She was arrested in June for allegedly re-entering South Africa unlawfully but was later released on warning.

A government legal case seeking her detention was postponed until next year. Adetshina stated that she has applied through proper legal channels to determine her status and citizenship, and criticized allowing xenophobia and misinformation to dictate treatment. Protesters from the anti-migrant group March and March gathered outside the court calling for her deportation.

The home affairs department argued in court that Adetshina applied for a South African visa while in Nigeria and obtained Nigerian passports for herself and her son, implying she was not a South African citizen. Officials also claimed she returned illegally via a Mozambican border post. Her case has been postponed to February 2027 to finalize her challenge against the deportation decision.

Adetshina remains free until then. Her South African identity and travel documents were stripped in 2024 following allegations that her mother, Anabela Rungo, committed iden