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A woman is currently facing execution in the Horn of Africa nation after being found guilty of murdering a 14-year-old girl in her care.

The killing of orphan Saabirin Saylaan in last autumn, and the shocking details that emerged about the circumstances surrounding her death, triggered protests near her home in Galkayo, along with fresh calls for stronger child protection.

The incident touched a deep nerve in a nation where child abuse frequently goes unreported, especially when it takes place inside clan households.

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

A Rare Verdict

The conviction of 34-year-old Hodan Mohamud Diiriye for murder represented one of the uncommon instances in Somalia where a court imposed the death sentence for child abuse.

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

Her spouse, Abdiaziz Nor, 65, was acquitted 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 died within a short period when she was just one year old.

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

But her life took a tragic 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 disclosed that in the two months she was living there, the young girl had endured "regular physical abuse" - she was assaulted and subjected to cruelty.

Proof recovered 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 especially harrowing recording, Diiriye can be heard saying: "I take pleasure in your pain."

A autopsy of Saabirin's body showed multiple injuries and deep stab wounds consistent with sustained violence.

Public Outcry

As details of the police investigation emerged, community outrage escalated.

Hundreds of women and young people demonstrated in Galkayo, holding signs reading "We Demand Justice" and calling on the authorities to prosecute 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 confronted police and a young man was shot dead.

Online, young women and girls initiated a wave of support movements, using social media tags 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 reject the attempts by traditional elders who want to settle this case through tribal agreements or behind closed doors."

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

A Systemic Challenge

Child abuse in Somalia is often concealed within households, and extended families are traditionally viewed as safe spaces – where the state should not interfere.

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 additional 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 "this tragedy 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 are reported to 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 brutally mistreated inside the home of his father's wife. The alleged perpetrator was quickly 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 overwhelmed 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 provisions include:

• Criminalising all forms of child abuse
• Toughening legal punishment for guardians who harm or neglect children
• Guaranteeing 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 enforced.

It said that Somali parental authority was paramount and no external entity could override it.

Lax Implementation

A women's and child's rights activist argued that implementation of existing 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 adds that children were often did not know that they could speak out 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 pointed out 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 speak out 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 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 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."