Seoul - A South Korean court said on Sunday it had ruled in favour of a gay Pakistani man who sought refugee status on the basis that he faced persecution back home, Yonhap news agency reported.

The Seoul Administrative Court said it had overturned a decision by the justice ministry to deny refugee status to the man, whose name and age were withheld.

The court cited a "high likelihood that the plaintiff will be subject to persecution" if repatriated to Pakistan, where homosexuality can be punished.

The man applied for refugee status citing his sexual orientation early last year, having arrived in South Korea in 1996.

"My life, as a homosexual, was in danger in my country," Yonhap quoted him as saying.

"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."

The administrative court ruling now has to be reviewed by the Supreme Court before becoming final.

South Korea signed on to the United Nations' refugee treaty in 1992. It has since granted asylum to 145 out of 2,413 applicants for refugee status.