A court ruling holding that the human rights of two Somali asylum seekers were breached has been hailed as a powerful victory by campaigners.

Shoving documents in English into the faces of asylum seekers without informing them of their rights is simply unacceptable

Kasin Ibrahim Nur and his friend Abdul Hakim Hassan Abdulle were prevented from applying for asylum in Malta and forced to return to Libya where they were tortured, beaten and sent into the desert to die. But the two men were lucky as they were rescued by Berber bedouins.

Speaking through his lawyer, Michael Camilleri, Mr Nur (who has since relocated to France) expressed satisfaction at the judgment. The two were awarded €10,000 each in compensation for the way their case was handled.

“They were not given the time to apply for refugee status or protection or challenge the way they were being treated and this is a grave injustice,” Dr Camilleri said.

He added that this case showed governments had to be careful before deporting people to unsafe countries.

On Wednesday, Mr Justice Raymond Pace found that Mr Nur and Mr Abdulle had been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment by the Maltese authorities handling their case.

The two men had entered Libya from Somalia. Mr Abdulle’s first attempt to cross the Mediterranean by boat failed when it sank and his son drowned.

He managed to swim back to the Libyan coast and, some time later, boarded another boat to Europe, along with Mr Nur.

After their boat was intercepted by a Maltese patrol craft, they were brought to Malta but not given the opportunity to apply for asylum. Nor were they assisted by an interpreter.

The two men were sent to Libya by plane when it was common knowledge that atrocities were taking place. There they were arrested, beaten and tortured before being released in the desert to die. After the two were rescued by Bedouins they made their way back to Malta in June 2006, initiating a constitutional case against the immigration authorities.

“Our Constitutional Court clearly and strongly stressed that shoving documents in English into the faces of asylum seekers without informing them of their rights and of the relevant procedures is simply unacceptable,” Human Rights organisation Aditus said. “We’re very happy with this judgment because it is a reminder that human rights and their legal protection are not the prerogative of certain classes of people but are to be enjoyed by all.

The NGO said if Maltese taxpayers are unhappy with paying this compensation, they should immediately insist that the government stops violating the human rights of asylum seekers and migrants.

Katrine Camilleri from Jesuit Refugee Services said the judgment was “so important because it stressed that governments could not just send people to a country where there was a real risk they would face serious harm and hope to justify it by claiming they did not know of the dangers, which were well documented by credible international organisations”.

Given the potentially fatal consequences for the people concerned, she said, it was extremely important to ensure this did not happen again.