Pictured above-left, sitting next to her rapist this Afghan woman known only by her first name Gulnaz was forced to marry her her cousin's husband-Asadullah raped her as a teen of 16-years-old.
Gulnaz from Kabul-based woman was abandoned by her family even though she pregnant as a result of the rape; as its a crime in Afghan to sleep with a married man whether its rape or not. She was sentenced to two years in prison by a Kabul court for 'adultery by force', but later was increased to 12 years following an appeal.
Speaking with CNN, Gulnaz revealed she married Asadullah as it was the only hope of a reduced sentence and for her daughter's future.
Her sentence was later cut to three years after a third appeal, having as the requirement for her to marry the Asadullah, who was jailed for seven years, but was also later dropped.
"I didn't want to ruin the life of my daughter or leave myself helpless so I agreed to marry him. We are traditional people. When we get a bad name, we prefer death to living with that name in society." she said.
To Asadullah, marrying Gulnaz was a rescue.
"If I hadn't married her according to our traditions, she couldn't have lived back in society. Her brothers didn't want to accept her back. Now, she doesn't have any of those problems. He said.
Gulnaz, who is now pregnant with her third child, gave birth to her daughter in the Badam Bagh women's jail in Kabul before she was freed by then President Hamid Karzai with no pre-conditions in December 2011.
Asadullah is still married to his first wife - Gulnaz's first cousin.
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