🔗 Share this article

A woman is presently facing execution in Somalia after being found guilty of murdering a teenager in her charge.

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

The case resonated deeply in a nation where child abuse often goes unreported, especially when it occurs inside kinship networks.

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

An Uncommon Judgment

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

Diiriye had denied the charges and her lawyer has lodged an appeal against the verdict.

Her husband, Abdiaziz Nor, 65, was cleared of murder but given one year in prison and ordered to pay $500 for failure of care.

A Tragic Upbringing

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

Both of her elder female relatives 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 devastating turn in September after Saabirin's great-aunt agreed that Diiriye's family, who required a home help, could assume her care.

Evidence of Abuse

During their investigation, 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 obtained from Diiriye's phone, including videos and audio recordings documented repeated violence. Some of these were released to the public before the trial.

In one particularly harrowing recording, Diiriye can be heard saying: "I'm enjoying 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, community outrage escalated.

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

They assembled 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 initiated a wave of solidarity campaigns, 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 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 Widespread Problem

Child abuse in Somalia is often hidden within households, and relatives are traditionally viewed as private 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 pursuit of justice for the murdered teenager.

"The perpetrator is now only awaiting the implementation 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 highlights 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.

Laws and Obstacles

In the summer this year, police in the capital, Mogadishu, acted on 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 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 outlines 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 establishing 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 enforced.

It said that Somali family rights was fundamental and no external entity could override it.

Weak Enforcement

A women's and child's rights activist contended that enforcement 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 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 private 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 neglecting 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 awareness 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 cut tragically short, her death is now compelling long-delayed conversations about child safety in Somalia.

But as the local community considers the verdict, some are uncertain if true accountability will be served in the long run.

"There is nothing to rejoice yet, we still need certainty," 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."