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A woman is now facing the death penalty in Somalia after being convicted of murdering a 14-year-old girl in her custody.

The killing of parentless child Saabirin Saylaan in last autumn, and the horrific details that emerged about the circumstances surrounding her death, provoked demonstrations near her home in Galkayo, along with renewed demands for greater child protection.

The case touched a deep nerve in a nation where child abuse frequently goes unreported, especially when it takes place inside extended families.

For numerous people, Saabirin's death symbolised a broader failure in child protection and the slow enforcement of legal safeguards designed to prevent such tragedies.

An Uncommon Judgment

The guilty verdict of 34-year-old Hodan Mohamud Diiriye for murder marked one of the uncommon cases in Somalia where a court handed down 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 given one year in prison and ordered to pay $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 elder female relatives had also died so she was cared for by her late mother's aunt, who ensured 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 investigation, police disclosed that in the two months she was living there, the young girl had suffered "regular physical abuse" - she was assaulted and subjected to cruelty.

Proof obtained from Diiriye's phone, including recordings and audio recordings captured ongoing 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 autopsy of Saabirin's body showed multiple injuries and deep knife wounds consistent with 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 "Justice for Saabirin" and urging the authorities to bring to trial all those responsible.

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

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

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

"No child should die like this," a tearful 18-year-old protester said in a clip shared on social media. "We also oppose the attempts by traditional elders who want to resolve this case through clan customs or behind closed doors."

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

A Systemic Challenge

Child abuse in Somalia is often concealed within households, and relatives are customarily viewed as safe 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 important 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 other individuals were involved in this crime, they will not be exempted, the law will be fully applied to them as well," he said.

A director of a child rights organisation said that "the case underscores the profound gaps that still exist in safeguarding 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 severely abused inside the home of his father's wife. The alleged perpetrator was swiftly 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 approved the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

The long-standing charter details 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 government department issued a statement stating that the implementation of the charter would be in accordance with Islamic law, with provisions contrary to religious teaching not being applied.

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

Weak Enforcement

A women's and child's rights activist argued that implementation of similar 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 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 private agreement and then inform the government that the matter has been resolved," the activist said.

A coordinator for the region's ministry of women's development denies that the authorities are neglecting 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 challenging to act. 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 taken 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 compelling long-delayed 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 rejoice 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."