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Tabassum Adnan lives in what must be one of the toughest places in the world to be a woman: the Swat Valley. It was briefly a base for the Pakistani Taliban - they're no longer in control but it's still a very conservative region, where all major decisions are taken by men - many of them in community councils, called Jirgas. Jirgas are very influential and operate like a parallel legal system. They often rule on disputes between families, and can order that a woman from one family be given to another to make amends. Tabassum got so fed up with the way women were treated that she started her own Jirga. She's been telling Outlook about some of the moments in her life that led her to this point - starting with the decision that she should get married when she was 13 years old.

Picture: Tabassum Adnan
Picture credit: Khwendo Jirga