An Afghan woman whose mutilated face was shown on the cover of Time magazine has appeared in public for the first time with a new prosthetic nose. As a young woman Bibi Ayesha's nose and ears were mutilated by her husband under the authoritarian Taliban regime, and she came to California a few months ago, aged 18, to undergo reconstructive surgery. She appeared on the front of Time in its August 9 edition under the rhetorical headline 'What Happens if we leave Afghanistan?' -- triggering debate about whether she was being exploited for political ends. She is expected to spend months in California having reconstructive surgery, staying with host families. In the meantime she has had a prosthetic one fitted -- and this week she appeared in public for the first time at a gala event in Los Angeles organized by the Grossman Burn Foundation, which is caring for her. 'Bibi Ayesha continues to make great progress and it is our hope that her doctors will clear her for surgery soon,' said the Foundation in a statement. She was married to a Taliban militia member when she was 12 years old, but suffered years of abuse. She tried to run away but was caught, and her husband cut off her nose and ears while his brother held her down. At this week's gala, she was presented with an award by Maria Shriver, the wife of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and met privately with former US first lady Laura Bush. 