The Foreign Office, which says it cannot be held legally liable, had asked Mr.Justice McCombe to rule on the preliminary issue of whether to throw out the claims.
Foreign Office counsel Robert Jay had argued that the test case was “built on inference” and ended in a “cul-de-sac,” the Press Association reported.
But the judge refused to throw out the claim, saying: “I have not found that there was systematic torture nor, if there was, the British government is liable.
“I have simply decided that these claimants have arguable cases in law.”
Ndiku Mutwiwa Mutua, Paulo Muoka Nzili, Wambugu Wa Nyingi and Jane Muthoni Mara, who are in their 70s and 80s, flew 4,000 miles from their rural homes for the trial this spring which centerd on events in detention camps between 1952 and 1961.
They were not in court for Thursday’s judgment.
At the earlier hearing in April, the judge was told that Mutua and Nzili had been castrated, Nyingi was beaten unconscious in an incident in which 11 men were clubbed to death, and Marahad been subjected to sexual abuse.
Historians estimate as many as 150,000 suspected members of the Mau Mau, a resistance movement launched by Kenyan tribes, were detained without trial between 1952 and 1961 and placed in British-administered camps.
The decision to take proceedings to the next stage is a setback for the Foreign Office which had argued that the British government should not be held liable as legal responsibility has devolved on to the present Kenyan government.
Next Easter, another hearing will be held to assess the evidence before any decision is made on whether to proceed to a full trial.
If the test-case claimants are eventually successful, more similar cases seeking substantial damages could be brought against the British government.
Welcoming the decision, Martyn Day of the solicitors Leigh, Day & Co, who represents the Kenyan survivors said the British government could “open a can of worms” if an eventual judgment is made against them.
“Undoubtedly the government is worried about the impact and implication of a judgment of this sort being made against them,” he told Reuters.
“It would be much more sensible for the government to sit around the table and talk to us rather than potentially face massive trouble from colonial groups around the world.”
“Our clients are not trying to get rich or asking for millions, all they want is peace of mind as they approach their last few years,” he added.
Responding to the judgement, the Foreign Office Minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham said the government will continue to defend the proceedings and is now “considering next steps.”
Several Mau Mau supporters present in the court room in London told Reuters the judgement was a “great day for Kenya.”
“It’s so far so good but we’re hoping that things get better and the right decision will be made in favor of the survivors,” said Sammy Kimetu, originally from Kenya.
Similar feeling was expressed by another supporter, Eric Kivuva, who said: “We’re heading in the right direction and we just have to keep our fingers crossed that justice will prevail.”
