A South Korean court has granted refugee status to an Ugandan woman who claims she cannot return home for fear of being persecuted for her sexual orientation, officials said Wednesday.

The 27-year-old Ugandan woman, whose name remains undisclosed, fled to South Korea in 2011 after her family members were killed by neighbors because she was a lesbian.

She soon petitioned the Seoul government for refugee status but the justice ministry rejected her application, saying she did not meet the criteria of a "well-founded fear of being persecuted."

Reversing the ministry's decision, the Seoul Administrative Court has ruled in favor of the woman on the grounds that it is highly likely that the plaintiff will be subject to persecution by the Ugandan government if repatriated, court officials said.

Same-sex relationships are currently illegal in Uganda and many other sub-Saharan African countries. The crime is punishable by incarceration in prison for up to 14 years.

It is the first time in Korean history that sexual orientation was used a basis for granting refugee status for a lesbian woman, court officials said.

In the past, two gay men from Nigeria and Pakistan were granted refugee status by the same court, they added.

South Korea signed onto the U.N. Convention and Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees in 1992. Since then, 5,069 foreigners have lodged claims here, with only 320 granted the status as of the end of last year, according to a justice ministry report released earlier this year. (Yonhap News)