For 23-year-
Old Femi *, celebrating his birthday with friends one night, spent a month and two days in prison due to his sexual orientation.
At the end of July, among 40 gay men and boys, Femi and his friends, some of whom were only 13 years old, were arrested at a gay nightclub in a hotel in Lagos, Nigeria's economic capital.
They are accused of participating in "gay activities", allowing other men to "violate the laws of nature" to have an understanding of their desires ".
Since his arrest, Femi has been kicked out of the House and is now shuttling through the bed of friends lounge and loved ones.
He lost his job as a cleaner, left college and made love for money to help pay for a ticket to Ghana, where he hoped he would be obscure.
Femi said that when he fell in love with the man who raped him at the age of 14, he "became gay", an old man who was close friends with his father.
It was not until his father accused him of "gay and girl behavior" that he kept the relationship secret.
In a country like Nigeria where people think homosexuality should be convicted, his confession will only lead to his father beating him more frequently and violently.
"He will hit me for any mistake.
Every minute, every hour.
"After his arrest for a month and two days in prison, he was released on bail by an NGO.
"I tried to bribe my way out [member]LGBTI]
The community went to talk to my father. . . [he]
Let them let me die [jail]," Femi says.
Gay sex has been banned in Nigeria since British rule, but the recent situation in the LGBTI community in Nigeria has become even worse.
On 2014, former President Goodluck Jonathan signed a bill banning 14 years in prison for the same people --
Same-sex marriage and 10-year same-sex marriage
Sex "love relationship ".
In the Muslim north of the country, 12 states have adopted Islamic law to punish gay people, including stone death, imprisonment and death. So far no-
One person was sentenced to death with few convictions.
A few days after the hotel was arrested, Lagos State Prosecutor
General adniji Kazem said the tough stance taken against these people was to help "stop the exploitation of the following people"
"Elderly children" of gay men ".
But Doyin *, 15, said there was no sexual relationship with minors.
Doyin spent seven days in prison before being released, but unlike many, he was not troubled by the consequences.
"My parents know I'm gay.
This is my way of life.
"It was my choice and they said I should live my life," he said . ".
"I have no feelings for women.
I have feelings for men.
Homosexuality is human [and that's]why I'm bold.
"For Tunde *, the consequences are the most important in his mind.
"The police came and started beating us, so I covered my face because I didn't want my mom to know," he said . ".
Tunde said he was beaten by a prisoner named the president who was instructed by the police to withdraw his testimony.
He said: "This is the time when I have no choice . . . . . . I said I was gay . ".
Tunde, along with others, pleaded not guilty to the charges in court, but his photos, name and HIV status were taken by local media and widely publicized in newspapers across the country.
"When I came out, my mom found out that the people who worked with me were abusing me and saying I was a girl," he said . ".
The men returned to court on November 22.
Nigeria is a very divided country, but Lagos activist Peter Kass says hostility to homosexuality is a problem that runs through the region and religion. His NGO —
Development Initiative for access to health and rights
On the night of the arrest, I was at the hotel doing HIV testing for some customers.
According to United Nations data, Nigeria has the highest HIV infection rate in West and Central Africa, with an estimated 3.
5 million people were infected with the virus.
Akin * and his team had 25 HIV tests that night.
They all came back positively.
He stayed in the lock for one night and said he was beaten with a stick, hammer and plywood.
"There was a hall in the police station and they gathered us together and stripped us of our clothes and said we should sleep on the floor.
"About 70 people were arrested that night, but according to Akin, about 30 men paid between $18 and $36 for the police to release them.
Bisi Alimi was the first gay man to appear on national television in Nigeria and later sought asylum in the UK.
He returned to Nigeria to support the men in court.
If news of the arrest is not found in the local media, the police will be paid, "the children will go home," he said ".
"These are poor gays.
"Class and economic forces play a role here," he said . ".
The situation of gay, bisexual and transgender people in northern Nigeria is more difficult than those living in the south, with at least 114 gay men and women arrested since January.
"What we see is that people use these laws to arm themselves and arrest people without distinction," said LGBT and women's rights activist Dorothy Aken'Ova . ".
"ISBA at any time (
Religious police)
They will mess up the party, arrest and torture them.
In August, she said,year-
Some of his classmates allegedly beat him to death in Jichuan state because they suspected him to be gay. "The [classmates]
Detained by the police, but in their statement they said they did so to correct [
The student who died]
Because he is suspected to be gay.
"Back in Lagos, Mr. Kas said criminal gangs used social media to catch unsuspecting gays, either beat them or persuade them of money.
"What people do is ping you, or you chat, and then you talk about hook-up," he said . ".
The struggle faced by gay women in Nigeria is often overlooked.
Rita *, 39, said that since gay men account for the majority of arrested and abusive people, it is not an "excuse" to ignore "violations of lesbian and bisexual rights ".
She said she knew she was attracted to women at the age of 15, but "given the influence of religion and culture, love in Nigeria will get tough ".
To please her parents, she married a man four years ago, but after her father died, she divorced.
Rita says her ex
The husband vowed to give her "a lesson [she]
"I will never forget" She came to her house last month with two police officers, where she and her partner were caught in bed.
She said that before a friend negotiated her release for $225, the police slapped her and kicked her and forced her to sleep on the police station floor for four days. But her ex-
The husband did not stop there.
On September 17, Rita said she was walking home at night when she was attacked by four men.
"They hit me with sticks and stones all the time," she said . ".
"I heard them say, 'so, I left the marriage for a woman?
Do I know this is a crime [to be gay]
14 years in prison?
"Some people say they should burn me alive with a car tire.
I'm just crying and begging for my life
Security nearby scared the attacker away, but Rita said her predecessor
The husband sent her a message saying that she would be attacked with acid next time.
Rita fled to Canada after being injured and is seeking asylum.
* Name changed subject: lgbt, sex-
AIDS-and-