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A woman is presently awaiting execution in Somalia after being found guilty of killing a teenager in her care.

The murder of orphan Saabirin Saylaan in last autumn, and the shocking details that came to light about the conditions surrounding her death, triggered protests near her home in Galkayo, along with reinvigorated demands for greater child protection.

The tragedy struck a chord in a country where child abuse often remains hidden, especially when it occurs inside kinship networks.

For numerous people, Saabirin's death represented a wider failure in child protection and the slow implementation of legal safeguards meant to prevent such tragedies.

A Rare Verdict

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

Diiriye had rejected the charges and her lawyer has lodged an appeal against the decision.

Her husband, Abdiaziz Nor, 65, was acquitted of murder but sentenced one year in prison and fined $500 for negligence.

A Tragic Upbringing

Saabirin was orphaned when both her parents died within a brief time when she was just one year old.

Both of her grandmothers had also died so she was cared for by her late mother's aunt, who ensured she got an schooling and attended a classical Quranic school.

But her life took a devastating turn in September after Saabirin's elder relative agreed that Diiriye's family, who required a domestic helper, could take her in.

Evidence of Abuse

During their inquiry, police revealed that in the two months she was living there, the young girl had endured "routine physical abuse" - she was assaulted and subjected to cruelty.

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

In one especially disturbing 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 knife wounds indicative of sustained violence.

Public Outcry

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

Hundreds of women and young people marched in Galkayo, carrying signs reading "We Demand Justice" and urging the authorities to prosecute all those responsible.

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

Things got so tense that during one protest demonstrators confronted police and a young man was killed by gunfire.

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 clan customs or behind closed doors."

This refers to when elders from the clans of those involved in a dispute step in with the aim of avoiding revenge, rather than determine criminal guilt.

A Widespread Problem

Child abuse in Somalia is often hidden within households, and relatives are customarily viewed as safe spaces – where the state should not interfere.

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

A regional police commander said the verdict marked an significant moment in the quest 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 additional individuals were involved in this crime, they will not be spared, the law will be fully applied to them as well," he said.

A director of a child rights organisation said that "this tragedy underscores the deep 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.

Legal Frameworks and Challenges

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

According to a report, three appalling 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 long-standing charter outlines legal frameworks to prevent abuse, exploitation and violence against children.

Its stipulations include:

• Outlawing 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 ministry issued a statement stating that the implementation of the charter would be guided by Islamic law, with provisions conflicting with religious teaching not being applied.

It said that Somali family rights was paramount and no external entity could supersede it.

Lax Implementation

A women's and child's rights activist contended that enforcement of similar measures in Somalia remained ineffective.

The police lack the resources to deal with cases along with social services. Cases often get interfered with clan elders, which undermines the justice system and victims' voices are not heard, she said.

She notes that children were often unaware 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 behind-the-door agreement and then inform the government that the matter has been resolved," the activist said.

A official 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 cut tragically short, her death is now compelling overdue conversations about child safety in Somalia.

But as the local community reflects on the verdict, some are uncertain if justice will be achieved 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 delays."