Kenyan victims of colonial torture win right to sue UK updated 6:53 AM EDT, Fri October 5, 2012 Plaintiffs Wambugu wa Nyingi, (L) Jane Muthoni Mara, (2nd L) Paulo Nzili (2nd R) stand with the late Ndiku Mutua on April 7, 2011. Britain does not deny its colonial forces tortured detainees The case dates to the 1950s, when the Mau Mau fighters battled British forces for land and freedom UK fears verdict will spark a plethora of lawsuits from other nations colonized by Britain (CNN) -- Three Kenyans tortured by British colonial authorities can sue the UK government for compensation, a London court ruled Friday, potentially opening the floodgates of legal action on abuse cases dating to the 1950s. The plaintiffs said they endured torture at the hands of British colonial forces, including castration, brutal beatings and forced deployment to detention camps. The torture occurred during the African nation's struggle for independence. The case dates to the 1950s, when fighters from the Mau Mau movement battled British forces for land and freedom. Kenya gained independence from Britain in 1963. Britain does not deny its colonial forces tortured detainees, but had argued a fair trial is not possible because the events occurred too long ago. It had tried to quash the legal action over fears it will spark a plethora of lawsuits from Kenya and other nations colonized by Britain. Last year, the London high court ruled that the UK government is the right entity to sue. Before that ruling, Britain had argued that it passed the powers and liabilities of the colonial administration to Kenya on independence. The plaintiffs -- Paulo Muoka Nzili, Wambuga Wa Nyingi and Jane Muthoni Mara -- are in their 70s and 80s. A fourth one died before the ruling. In July, British government conceded for the first time that Kenyans had been tortured during the fight for independence. "The judgment means the government will now have to face potentially thousands of claims from Kenyans who suffered similar torture," their lawyers said in a statement.