Afghan woman's choice: 12 years in jail or marry her rapist and risk death

CNN ^ | November 22, 2011 | Nick Paton Walsh & Masoud Popalza

[Just4Him]

Kabul (CNN) -- The ordeal of Gulnaz did not simply begin and end with the physical attack of her rape. The rape began a years-long nightmare of further pain, culminating in an awful choice she must now make.

SNIP

In Afghanistan, this brought her not sympathy, but prosecution. Aged just 19, she was found guilty by the courts of sex outside of marriage -- adultery -- and sentenced to twelve years in jail. Now inside Kabul's Badam Bagh jail, she and her child are serving her sentence together.

Sitting with the baby in her lap, her face carefully covered, she explains the only choice she has that would end her incarceration. The only way around the dishonor of rape, or adultery in the eyes of Afghans, is to marry her attacker. This will, in the eyes of some, give her child a family and restore her honor.

[allmendream]

+1

[Forward the Light Brigade]

Its just good old 15th Century Islam—Sharia Law. Just wait till its imposed here! It will have some fun element! No more women’s liberation! It will vanish under away! Fathers can kill their daughters if they misbehave! We can slay gays! We can get rid of all those pesky Church people who knock on our doors! No more Christmas hassels! In fact Christmas will be banned! No more loans or interest! Sadly we will have to get rid of all pork and all dogs—I will miss the Pulled Pork sandwiches. We will all have to learn Arabic-—much harder than Spanish—but we can have four wives! It will be just dandy. Don’t worry, after the USA converts we will start screwing around with Islam—reforming it —changing it—they will hate us more then than now.

[UnbelievingScumOnTheOtherSide]

Okay! You’ve convinced me! I see the light, uh, Noor.

ALLAHU AKHBAR!

Not.

Guess that makes me an apostate now :-)

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Jefferson and the other founding fathers sowed the seeds of a Democracy in fertile soil. The Middle East is barren and parched and the seed will find no purchase.

[Mr. Lucky]

If the murder of unborn children is outlawed, people will rape each other?

Yeah, that's a well thought out argument.