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A woman is presently facing the death penalty in Somalia after being convicted of killing a teenager in her charge.

The murder of orphan Saabirin Saylaan in last autumn, and the gruesome details that emerged about the conditions surrounding her death, provoked demonstrations near her home in Galkayo, along with reinvigorated calls for enhanced child protection.

The case resonated deeply in a country where child abuse often remains hidden, particularly when it takes place inside clan households.

For many, Saabirin's death symbolised a broader shortcoming in child protection and the delayed implementation of legal protections designed to prevent such tragedies.

A Rare Verdict

The guilty verdict of 34-year-old Hodan Mohamud Diiriye for murder marked one of the uncommon cases in Somalia where a court imposed the ultimate penalty for child abuse.

Diiriye had denied the charges and her lawyer has filed an challenge against the ruling.

Her spouse, Abdiaziz Nor, 65, was cleared of murder but sentenced one year in prison and fined $500 for failure of care.

A Tragic Upbringing

Saabirin was left parentless when both her parents passed away within a brief time when she was just one year old.

Both of her elder female relatives had also died so she was cared for by her late mother's aunt, who made sure she got an education and attended a traditional Quranic school.

But her life took a devastating turn in September after Saabirin's elder relative agreed that Diiriye's family, who needed a home help, could assume her care.

Proof of Maltreatment

During their inquiry, police revealed that in the two months she was living there, the young girl had endured "regular physical abuse" - she was beaten and tortured.

Proof obtained from Diiriye's phone, including recordings and audio recordings captured repeated violence. Some of these were released to the public before the trial.

In one particularly harrowing recording, Diiriye can be heard saying: "I take pleasure in your pain."

A post-mortem examination of Saabirin's body revealed multiple injuries and deep stab wounds indicative of sustained violence.

Community Anger

As details of the police investigation emerged, public anger escalated.

Many of women and young people marched in Galkayo, carrying signs reading "We Demand Justice" and calling on the authorities to bring to trial all those responsible.

They gathered outside the local hospital where her body was lying in the morgue.

Things got so heated that during one protest demonstrators clashed with police and a young man was shot dead.

Online, young women and girls launched a wave of support movements, using social media tags citing Saabirin's name.

"No child should die like this," a emotional 18-year-old protester said in a clip shared on social media. "We also reject the attempts by traditional elders who want to settle this case through tribal agreements or behind closed doors."

This describes when elders from the clans of those involved in a dispute intervene with the aim of preventing revenge, rather than establish criminal guilt.

A Widespread Problem

Child abuse in Somalia is often concealed within households, and relatives are customarily viewed as private spaces – where the state should not intervene.

Diiriye's trial and other related hearings were streamed live on social media to foster public trust in the justice system.

A regional police commander said the verdict represented an significant moment in the pursuit of justice for the murdered teenager.

"The perpetrator is now only awaiting the carrying out of the death sentence. If further evidence surfaces proving that other individuals were involved in this crime, they will not be exempted, the law will be fully enforced to them as well," he said.

A director of a child rights organisation said that "this tragedy underscores the profound gaps that still exist in protecting the most basic human rights of children in our society."

"Children continue to face violence inside family homes, and only the most extreme cases ever reach the police," he added.

Laws and Obstacles

In June this year, police in the capital, Mogadishu, received a report that a three-year-old boy had been severely abused inside the home of his father's wife. The accused perpetrator was swiftly arrested.

According to a report, three horrific acts of violence against children occurred in the country during October and November.

The head of a local women's association in Galkayo said the community was inundated with cases of violence in the home, many of which never make it to the courts.

On 1 October this year, Somalia's parliament ratified the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

The decades-old charter details legal frameworks to prevent abuse, exploitation and violence against children.

Its stipulations include:

• Criminalising all forms of child abuse
• Toughening legal punishment for guardians who harm or neglect children
• Ensuring state responsibility for vulnerable and orphaned children
• And creating monitoring systems in schools, hospitals and communities.

But just three days later, a government department issued a clarification stating that the implementation of the charter would be in accordance with Islamic law, with provisions conflicting with religious teaching not being applied.

It said that Somali parental authority was fundamental and no external entity could supersede it.

Lax Implementation

A women's and child's rights activist contended that implementation of existing measures in Somalia remained weak.

The police do not have the resources to deal with cases along with social services. Cases often get mediated by clan elders, which weakens the justice system and victims' voices are not heard, she said.

She notes that children were often did not know that they could report abuse and many schools were not teaching them that they could report abuse.

"In many similar cases, both sides of the family reach a private agreement and then inform the government that the matter has been settled," the activist said.

A coordinator for the region's ministry of women's development denies that the authorities are failing in their responsibility to protect children.

She highlighted programmes to help youths and efforts to protect street children.

She did however admit that in cases like Saabirin's, it is sometimes difficult to intervene. She acknowledged that more should be done to increase understanding that people can raise concerns if they suspect that a child might not be safe.

"Every child has the right to be removed from any household in which they do not feel safe," the official said.

A Force for Conversation

Although Saabirin's life was ended too soon, her death is now forcing long-delayed conversations about child safety in Somalia.

But as the local community reflects on the verdict, some are unsure if true accountability will be served in the long run.

"There is nothing to celebrate yet, we still need clarity," one of the young protesters said. "We don't want justice in words, we want to see it with our own eyes. We don't want postponements."