Nigeria, Oct. 12 -- On a sunny afternoon in August 2020, 13-year-old Omar Farouq stood before a Sharia court in Kano State, accused of blasphemy. Too young to understand the gravity of the charges, he listened in disbelief as the judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison.

Omar's ordeal began after a heated argument with a friend, during which they exchanged insults. Soon after, police officers summoned him, and he was charged with blasphemy. When the case became public, an angry mob attacked his home, forcing his mother to flee to a neighbouring village.

Nigeria's Child Rights Act (CRA), enacted in 2003, was meant to prevent such treatment of children. The law domesticates the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and prohibits pract...