An orphan’s murder draws attention to child abuse in Somalia

A woman convicted of killing a 14-year-old girl in her care is awaiting execution in Somalia.

The murder of orphaned child Saabirin Saylaan last November, and the horrific details surrounding the circumstances of her death, sparked protests near her home in Galkayo and renewed calls for greater child protection.

The case has struck a deep nerve in a country where child abuse often goes unreported, especially when it occurs within extended families.

For many, Sabirin’s death is emblematic of wider failures in child protection and the slow implementation of legal safeguards designed to prevent such tragedies.

Hodan Mohamud Diiriye, 34, was convicted of murder in one of the rare cases in which a Somali court has handed down the maximum penalty for child abuse.

Diriyah denies the charges and her lawyers have appealed the verdict.

Her husband, Abdiaziz Nor, 65, was found not guilty of murder but sentenced to a year in jail and fined $500 (£375) for neglect.

When Saabirin was only one year old, her parents died within a short period of time and she was left an orphan.

Both of her grandmothers also died, so she was cared for by her late mother’s aunt, who made sure she received an education and attended a traditional Koranic school.

But in September, Sabirin’s life took a devastating turn after her aunt agreed that Diriyah’s family, who needed home care, could take her in.

During the investigation, police revealed that the young girl suffered “daily physical abuse” – being beaten and tortured – during the two months she lived there.

Evidence recovered from Diriyah’s cellphone included videos and audio recordings of multiple acts of violence. Some of them were leaked to the public before the trial – it’s unclear who posted them.

In one particularly disturbing recording, Diriyah can be heard saying: “I enjoy your pain.”

An autopsy on Sabirin’s body revealed multiple injuries and deep stab wounds consistent with a prolonged act of violence.

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

Hundreds of women and young people marched in Galkayo, one of the largest cities in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region, holding signs reading “Justice for Sabirin” and calling on authorities to prosecute all those responsible.

They gathered outside the local hospital, where her body lay in the morgue.

Things got so intense that at one protest, demonstrators clashed with police and a young man was shot dead, though it was unclear who fired the shot.

Online, young women and girls launched a wave of solidarity movements using hashtags that mentioned Sabirin’s name.

“No child should die like this,” protester Aniiso Abdullahi, 18, said through tears in a video shared on social media.

“We also reject attempts by traditional elders to resolve the case through clan customs or behind closed doors.”

This refers to situations where clan elders involved in a dispute intervene with the aim of avoiding reprisals and further violence rather than establishing criminal charges. Some kind of compensation is usually agreed upon, but because the process prioritizes peace for the victims over justice, and the voices of women and children are often not heard, there is a sense that some crimes go unsolved.

Child abuse in Somalia is often hidden within families, and the extended family has traditionally been seen as a safe and private space where the state should not interfere.

Diriyah’s trial and other related hearings were broadcast live on social media to ensure public trust in the justice system.

Regional police commander Mohamed Abdihakim said the verdict marked an important moment in seeking justice for the murdered teenager.

He said: “The perpetrators are now simply awaiting execution. If there is further evidence that others were involved in this crime, they will not be spared and the law will be fully applied to them.”

Najeb Wehelie, director of children’s rights organization Dhoodaan, said: “This case highlights the huge gaps that still exist in our society in protecting children’s most basic human rights.

He added: “Children continue to face domestic violence and only the most extreme cases are reported to the police.”

In June this year, the police in the capital Mogadishu received a report that a three-year-old boy was severely abused at the home of his father-in-law’s wife.

The alleged perpetrator was quickly arrested.

According to Save the Children Somalia, three horrific acts of violence against children occurred in the country during October and November: the arson murder of four young children in Hargeisa, the violent rape of an 11-year-old girl in Puntland, and the murder of a mother and her three daughters in central Somalia.

Shukri Abdi, head of the local women’s association in Galkayo, said the community is rife with cases of domestic violence, many of which never make it to court.

On October 1 this year, the Somali Parliament approved the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child with 130 members in favor, 10 against, and 5 abstentions.

The decades-old charter outlines a legal framework to prevent abuse, exploitation and violence against minors.

Its provisions include:

• Criminalize all forms of child abuse
• Strengthen legal penalties for guardians who harm or neglect children
• Ensure state responsibility for vulnerable children and orphans
• and establish monitoring systems in schools, hospitals and communities.

But just three days later, the Ministry of Family and Human Rights Development issued a clarification that the implementation of the charter would be guided by Islamic law and the constitution, and that provisions contrary to religious teachings would not be enforced.

It said parental authority in Somalia is fundamental and no external entity can override it. The ministry also said the charter’s restriction on marriage before the age of 18 contradicts Sharia law, which allows girls to marry during puberty, but in reality the minimum age in Somalia is 15.

Fadumo Ahmed, a women’s and children’s rights activist, believes that enforcement of similar measures already in place in Somalia remains weak.

The police lack the capacity to handle cases and provide social services. She said cases were often interfered with by tribal elders, which undermined the justice system and victims’ voices were not heard.

She added that children often don’t know they can speak out and that many schools don’t teach them that they can report abuse.

“In many similar cases (Sabirin’s), both families would come to a behind-the-scenes agreement and then notify the government that the matter had been resolved,” Ms Ahmed said.

Shukri Ahmed Hussein, coordinator of the Puntland Ministry of Women Development and Family Affairs, denied that authorities had failed in their duty to protect children.

In an interview with the BBC, she pointed to programs to help young people who have been recruited to join armed groups, as well as efforts to protect street children.

But she acknowledged that in cases like Sabirin’s it was sometimes difficult to intervene. She acknowledged that more should be done to raise awareness and that people could speak up if they suspected their children might be unsafe.

“Every child in Puntland has the right to be removed from any home where they feel unsafe,” Ms Hussein said.

Although Sabirin’s life was tragically cut short, her death has now forced a long overdue conversation about child safety in Somalia.

But as local communities reflect on the verdict, some are unsure whether justice will be served in the long term.

“There is nothing to celebrate yet, we still need clarification,” one of the young protesters, Abdiqadir Ali, said in a social media message.

“We don’t want verbal justice, we want to see it with our own eyes. We don’t want delays.”