LGBTQ Ugandans live in fear as new law looms

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00:00 Living in hiding.

00:02 Somewhere in Uganda's capital is this shelter for lesbian women.

00:06 Gone are the days when its residents could be themselves and feel even remotely safe.

00:11 Staff at the shelter have told them to be discreet and blend into their surroundings,

00:16 even if that means changing their behaviour and physical appearance.

00:20 You look at yourself in the mirror before you get home and you're like,

00:22 "Do I look too queer? Should I get my rainbows off because that's my identity?

00:29 I'm colourful."

00:31 So you have to select your clothing, your jewellery, your everything,

00:35 because everybody's just on alert and it's dangerous.

00:38 Following a suspected case of paedophilia between a teacher and a young boy in January,

00:43 a homophobic fever took hold of the country.

00:47 The authorities and the media blamed this criminal act on the whole of the LGBT community.

00:53 At the end of March, the Ugandan parliament voted in favour of a new,

00:57 so-called anti-homosexuality bill.

01:00 We are going to reinforce the law enforcement officers to make sure that homosexuals have no space in Uganda.

01:07 You will have no space in Uganda.

01:09 The bill is one of the toughest pieces of anti-gay legislation in the world.

01:14 If the president decides to approve this text,

01:17 members of the LGBT community could risk the rest of their lives in prison.

01:22 They could even be condemned to death.

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