Winnie Madikizela Mandela, ex-wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela, smiles as she arrives for the 54th National Conference of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa December 16, 2017. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African anti-apartheid veteran Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, ex-wife of late President Nelson Mandela, has been hospitalized for a kidney infection but is expected to make a full recovery, the Times Live online news site said on Tuesday.

Times Live, quoting her spokesman Victor Dlamini, said the 81-year-old had complained of a “loss of appetite” and that “one of her legs was painful”. She was taken to Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg on Sunday.

“Upon admission‚ it was discovered that she had an infection that had affected her kidneys. She is expected to make a full recovery and should spend approximately a week at the hospital‚” Dlamini was quoted as saying in a statement on Tuesday night.

Madikizela-Mandela’s personal assistant, Zodwa Zwane, directed all queries to Dlamini, who was not immediately available for comment.

Madikizela-Mandela has been in and out of hospital since 2016 for back and knee surgery.

During her ex-husband’s 27-year imprisonment for his fight against apartheid, Madikizela-Mandela campaigned for his release and the rights of black South Africans, undergoing arrest and banishment. White minority rule ended in 1994.