Chidimma Adetshina’s participation sparks controversy over her nationality

When law student Chidimma Adetshina landed the coveted runner-up spot at Miss South Africa, her triumph sparked a backlash, exposing a vein of xenophobia that is close to the surface for some in the country.

The 23-year-old’s name suggests she is Nigerian, but internet investigators wanted to know more and combed through every corner of her life. They discovered that her father is Nigerian and that, although her mother is South African, her family is originally from neighboring Mozambique.

“On behalf of South Africans, we do not recognise her or that name! She better start packing her bags and go home,” one commenter on X fumed.

But where is her homeland? Ms Adetshina is South African, as the organisers of the competition have confirmed. She has said in interviews that she was born in Soweto – the township neighbouring Johannesburg – and grew up in Cape Town.

But the “going home” sentiment and even more virulent attacks flooded social media. A petition calling for her exclusion from the high-profile TV competition was also launched, which garnered more than 14,000 signatures before being withdrawn.

The country’s Culture Minister, Gayton McKenzie, leader of the Patriotic Alliance party, which joined a coalition government and made migration issues a key part of its platform, spoke out on the matter.

“We really can’t have Nigerians competing in our Miss SA pageant. I want to have all the facts before I comment but it’s already giving a funny vibe,” he said on X.

The question has struck a chord in South Africa that goes beyond who will take to the stage in the final next weekend.

Ms Adetshina declined an interview request from the BBC, but told news website Sowetan Live that the online hate she faced had made her think twice about running.

“I represent a country, but I don’t feel love from the people I represent,” she said.

Ms Adetshina added that the whole situation smacked of “black hatred”, highlighting a particular form of xenophobia in South Africa known as “Afrophobia”, which targets other Africans.

She felt she was not the only candidate among the final 16 women with a name whose origins lay beyond the country’s borders – some had South Asian and European names – but she still received the brunt of the criticism.

Asked to respond to the comments Ms Adetshina faced, a spokesperson for Miss South Africa did not respond directly but simply said she was eligible to compete in the pageant.

This is not the first time this has happened. For Melissa Nayimuli, a Miss South Africa contestant last year, it brought back difficult memories.

The 28-year-old has been the target of the same criticism levelled at Ms Adetshina because her father is Ugandan.

She told the BBC she was not surprised by the reaction she received, as she had experienced it for most of her life.

“It’s something I tried to run away from, but how do you run away from yourself?” she asked.

Ms Nayimuli said that during her childhood she constantly spoke Xhosa, her mother tongue and one of South Africa’s official languages, to “prove her South African identity”.

Her voice cracked as she admitted that she had been ashamed of her Ugandan identity when she was younger because of the Afrophobia she had experienced.

“I didn’t want to be seen with my father because of his darker skin and East African features which were an obvious giveaway,” she told the BBC.

“At home, my father was my hero, but outside I saw him treated like an enemy.”

University of the Free State sociologist Dr Nombulelo Shange links this hostility to South Africa’s history of racism and the apartheid system, which imposed a strict hierarchy that favoured whites.

“There is a sad apartheid mentality that we are struggling to eliminate as a country,” she said.

“It shows the deep self-hatred that we as black South Africans carry within us.”

Dr Shange added that South Africans had internalised oppressive racist thinking such as colourism, where lighter skin tones are perceived as better.

After the end of apartheid in 1994, Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC)-led government welcomed African migrants and asylum seekers into the country, partly to facilitate their reintegration on the continent after years of isolation.

But as many South Africans struggle financially, foreigners have become targets for some frustrated by their situation.

Zimbabweans, Nigerians and Somalis, among others, have been accused of taking opportunities and resources from South Africans.

“There is a perception of foreigners as competitors for scarce jobs, resources, living space and services,” Michael Morris, director of media at the South African Institute of Race Relations, told the BBC.

He said the growing number of successful Africans in South Africa could “easily trigger resentment and violence”.

This climate of hostility has sometimes degenerated into attacks. South Africa experienced its worst outbreak of violence, mainly against African foreigners, in 2008, leaving more than 60 dead.

“There are black South Africans who argue that Africans from elsewhere on the continent have no place in South Africa,” Mr Morris said.

More than a decade ago, Ms. Nayimuli felt that animosity acutely when her father was arrested.

“My father is the kindest, gentlest soul in the entire universe,” she said. Yet he was treated like a criminal because, she said, he looked like a foreigner.

When Ms Nayimuli’s mother arrived at the police station in the capital, Pretoria, where her husband was being held, the officers did not even have an explanation or charges against him.

Her father was released and Ms Nayimuli’s family never spoke of him again.

They had often “walked on eggshells” when it came to the xenophobia they faced, but when it erupted at last year’s Miss South Africa pageant, it gave them an opportunity to address the issue directly and, for Ms Nayimuli, it was part of a healing process.

Today, seeing Ms. Adetshina endure the same level of abuse, she feels deep compassion for her.

“She’s not just a trending topic. She’s a human being. She’s a young woman who’s being harassed online – it’s wrong, it’s hurtful and it’s so dangerous,” she said.

But she stressed that xenophobes are a small minority and many South Africans are calling for unity.

Julius Malema, leader of the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party, defended Ms Adetshina last week, saying: “Why do people want to say she is from Nigeria or Mozambique? She was born here.”

It was on this unifying message that Ms Nayimuli ended her journey as Miss South Africa.

Last year, as the spotlight shone on her in the final round of the competition, she called for African unity in the face of hatred.

“As Africa, we must assert our power. We are one,” she told a raucous audience that applauded her message of unity.

But it seems that this phenomenon has not taken root since discrimination has resurfaced.

Next Saturday, Ms. Adetshina will have the opportunity to take the stage, but it is not yet clear whether she will tackle the haters head on.