A South African woman has won her immigration battle with the New Zealand authorities after being told she was “too fat” to live in the country.
Mondelea Bezuidenhout, 35, who lost 10 body mass index (BMI) points while fighting to stay in New Zealand, confirmed that she managed to overturn the decision to reject her residency application on the grounds that she was too overweight.
She had moved to New Zealand with her husband and young children in 2018 to start a new life. However, she was forced to launch an appeal against the government’s decision to reject her residency request because her BMI was “too high”.
According to The South African, a tribunal in New Zealand decided to uphold the decision before granting Mondelea a special exemption following her appeal.
After losing 10 BMI points during the process, Mondelea also managed to supply a referral of good health from her GP.
A New Zealand immigration spokesperson told the local news media website Stuff at the time that the woman’s weight alone was not the reason her residency application was declined.
However, the spokesperson also said that several operations she had previously undergone due to her weight were counted as evidence that her obesity would be too costly on the public health system.
The family launched a crowdfunding campaign to help them cover the legal costs and they admit to still feeling hurt from the incident.
The family received their residency papers in December 2021, but decided to go public over the “hurtful” ordeal now.
Mondelea said: “I’m overwhelmed not just because of the decision, but because I felt really listened to and understood, finally…someone in the government saw my side of the story, how hard I had worked, without even meeting me.”
She added: “This process has been really hard, it’s taken a toll on us. What happened was hurtful.
“The journey we had to go through wasn’t easy but I’m so thankful for every single person that kept us in their prayers. At the end of the day, God has never failed me yet.
“Our hearts are still healing, but we are celebrating the victory and looking forward to a bright future.”
Mondelea said: “My High School motto, ‘persevere and overcome’, kept me going.”
