BEIJING (Reuters) - Many LGBT people in China are being forced to undergo “conversion therapy”, often done by unscrupulous, unlicensed providers in a sector that operates with little oversight by the authorities, rights groups said.

Though widely discredited by doctors, conversion therapy is an attempt to change a person’s sexual orientation through various means such as hypnosis, drugs, acupuncture and even electric shock therapy.

In China, the therapy is often offered by centers not licensed to practise medicine, as well as by public hospitals, in the absence of an outright ban.

“It’s not just a commercial scam, but an action that violates people’s rights,” said Wang Zhenyu, head of the Public Interest Law Center on Equal Rights for LGBTI, one of the groups that compiled the report.

The National Health Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Read more via Reuters