Dear Sir/Madam,

I write to you with a desperate plea for urgent humanitarian intervention regarding Ms. Minah Mokoena, born on 26 June 1979, whose birth was never registered. Despite being born in South Africa to South African parents (her father now deceased and her mother still alive with a valid SA ID), she has remained undocumented her entire life.

I have been assisting her for the past 17 years to obtain her ID. A file was initially opened in Phuthaditjhaba (File No: 04002424828), but the documentation was tragically lost when her home burned down. Despite our best efforts to reapply, we’ve been constantly redirected between Phuthaditjhaba, Sasolburg, and Pretoria, without meaningful help.

She has no income and cannot afford repeated travel. Her schooling in QwaQwa is hard to verify due to lost records and uncooperative officials — many of whom demand bribes for assistance.

To make matters worse, she has:

A 27-year-old daughter, also without an ID, who now has two children.

A 7-year-old child, who I’ve been trying to register for school for over a year, without success.

This is not only about a document. It’s about a multi-generational crisis:

No access to work

No school enrollment

No social grants

No dignity

During COVID-19, they received no relief — they don’t exist on the system.

I plead with your office to treat this as an urgent humanitarian case. We are simply asking that Ms. Mokoena and her children be recognised in the country of their birth, by the government meant to protect them.

Please assist us in:

Reopening her case/file with Home Affairs.

Facilitating Late Birth Registration for her and her daughter.

Helping her 7-year-old child enroll in school and access documentation.

I am available to assist and can provide affidavits and background documentation where needed. I beg of you: Please intervene — this family cannot continue to suffer in silence.