CCPR/C/72/D/884/1999 page 7 same school. Given the circumstances, counsel contends, the spelling mistakes and other errors that were used as evidence of the author’s limited proficiency in Latvian should not be taken into account. 5.7 In the third place, with reference to the State party’s assertion that participation in public affairs requires a high level of proficiency in the State language and that such a precondition is reasonable and based on objective criteria set forth in the regulations on the certification of proficiency in the State language, counsel contends that such a precondition for standing in local elections is not reasonable. There are no other preconditions for candidates in general, for example with regard to level of education or professional skills. The fact that the only precondition relates to proficiency in Latvian means, according to counsel, that the rights to vote and to be elected are not respected and guaranteed to all individuals with no distinction on the grounds of their language status. Counsel asserts that, for around 40 per cent of the population of Latvia, Latvian is not the mother tongue. 5.8 According to counsel, this precondition of a high level of proficiency in Latvian for participation in local elections is not based on objective criteria. However, that does not mean that the author is of the opinion that the criteria set forth in the regulations on the certification of proficiency in the State language are not objective. Simply, the latter criteria are not applied in the provision (in article 22, paragraph 8, of the Law) that a candidate may be struck off the list if he or she does not meet the requirements of the highest level (level 3) of proficiency in Latvian, and that this must be certified by an opinion of the SLB. Counsel states that, according to the regulations on the certification of proficiency in the State language, language proficiency is certified by a special Certification Commission made up of at least five language specialists. The regulations describe in detail the testing and certification procedure, thereby ensuring its objectivity and reliability. Level 1, 2 and 3 certificates are valid for an unlimited period. According to article 17 of the Law, candidates who have not obtained their secondary school diploma from a school in which Latvian is the language of instruction must submit a copy of their level 3 certificate to the Election Commission. The author had submitted such a copy to the Riga Election Commission. Counsel maintains that the SLB opinion, issued on the basis of an ad hoc examination conducted by a single inspector from the State Language Inspectorate following complaints allegedly received by the Ministry of Education, was not consistent with the requirements of the regulations on the certification of proficiency in the State language. Moreover, the State party acknowledges that the SLB opinion relates only to the issue of eligibility and in no way either implies the automatic invalidation of the certificate or may be used as a basis for revising its appropriateness. 5.9 Fourth and last, counsel takes up the State party’s contention that all domestic remedies have not been exhausted. Counsel recalls that the court judgement of 25 February 1997 confirming the Riga Election Commission’s decision of 11 February 1997 was final and entered into force with immediate effect. The special procedure available for appealing such decisions is in fact the procedure that the author followed. 5.10 Counsel goes on to point out that remedies should not only be adequate and sufficient, but should also make it possible in practice to obtain the re-establishment of the situation in question. The remedy exhausted by the author - the special procedure for appealing the Election Commission’s decision - was the only remedy that would have made it possible to achieve the