It has been claimed lesbians in South Africa are being dragged from the streets and raped by men to 'correct' their sexuality, according to a report.



Sky News in the UK claims it has found evidence of a new trend, so-called "corrective rape", resulting in widespread abuse against the lesbian community.



A group of women spoken to said some feared for their lives as they all knew someone who had been dragged from the streets and raped because they had come out as gay.



One woman said the offenders covered their faces with balaclavas and she had been repeatedly threatened in her township.



Funeka Solidaat said what shocked her more than the behaviour of the masked men, was the dismissive attitude of police, saying she was made to feel like "a laughing stock."



Another woman, Desire Dudu, believes people are risking their lives if they make their sexuality clear.



Sky News approached a group of men about attitudes towards gay women, with one man claiming lesbians should be "whipped, as there is no mention of lesbians in the Bible."



The men all agreed women should behave like women and this was a way of teaching them that.