The prospect of significant social reform briefly illuminated Somalia as a proposed law aimed to establish 18 as the minimum age for marriage, aligning the nation with international norms

For 24 hours, it symbolized hope for Somalian girls, many of whom have been robbed off their childhoods under the weight of tradition, poverty, and silence. Then, almost as quickly as it appeared, the law was gone, revoked and erased by outrage. Not from the women who have carried the cost of child marriage for generations, but from the men who claimed that such a law was an attack on their faith and culture.

They flooded the streets and social media, draped in the language of religion, insisting that Islam gives them the right to marry girls once they reach “maturity.” But beneath the pious slogans and righteous anger, many saw something far less holy fear. Fear of losing control in a society built on patriarchy, fear of being told no, fear of a new dawn in which a woman’s body and choices would no longer be treated as male property. Religion, in this case, became a convenient shield for abuse twisted and weaponized to justify exploitation.

Somalia’s lawmakers, instead of standing firm, retreated. The law that could have protected countless girls from early pregnancies, abusive marriages, and lost futures was sacrificed to appease those who shout the loudest. In a nation already scarred by decades of conflict and instability, women’s rights were once again the easiest to compromise.

The tragedy is not just that the law was revoked, but that so many men saw its introduction as a threat rather than progress. It reveals how deeply normalized child marriage has become how it’s dressed up as culture and sanctified by selective readings of scripture. True faith uplifts, protects, and nurtures. It does not endorse harm or deny children their right to grow up.

Somalia’s 24-hour reform was a glimpse into what could be: a society where girls are not brides, where consent is real, and where religion is not an excuse for abuse. But for now, that dream has been pushed back silenced by the same voices that fear equality more than sin.