SEOUL, Jan. 3 (UPI) -- A South Korean court Sunday granted refugee status to a Pakistani man who said his life was endangered in his country because he is gay.
The Seoul court reversed an earlier Justice Ministry ruling that rejected the man's petition on the basis that it failed to meet the United Nation's refugee criterion of a "well-founded fear of being persecuted," Yonhap News Agency reported.
"My life, as a homosexual, was in danger in my country. My family and relatives were my enemy. They said I was insulting my family, Islam and my country and threatened that they would report me to police," said the man, who was not identified by the news agency.
The Seoul Administrative Court said the man should be granted refugee status because "there is a high likelihood that the plaintiff will be subject to persecution by the Pakistani government and Muslim society simply because he is gay."
