4.2 In respect of the allegedly discriminatory measures directly concerning
the author, the State party argues that R.L.M. has failed to exhaust available
remedies. His two letters addressed to the Sector of the Academy of Rennes in
February 1988 and to the Hector of the Academy of Nantes in April 1988 do not
display any of the characteristics of an administrative remedy. In fact, the
author merely sought, through these letters, an audience with a view to
securing the establishment of a post for the teaching of Breton, and did not
complain about his personal situation.
4.3 The State party contends that the following remedies would be open to the
author, adding that none of them has been utilized*
(a) Recourse to the representatives of his profession in the
"administrative (parity) commission" (Commission administrative parita.ire^,
which may be seized of all types of questions concerning personnel disputes
(article 25 (4)) of Decree 82-451 of 28 May 1982 concerning the Commission
administrative paritaire);
(b) Filing of an ex gratia appeal to a higher administrative authority,
including the Minister of Education. The advantage of such an appeal, while
optional, is that it may be based not only on the legally relevant facts of
the case but also on considerations of equity and expediency;
(c) Finally, if the author considered that any of the contested
decisions violated his rights, he could have sought a contentious remedy for
abuse of power, requesting the administrative judge to annul the decision.
Such an application could have been filed within two months of the date on
which he was notified of any adverse decision affecting him.
4.4 The State party emphasizes that the inactivity or negligence of the
author in respect of pursuit of domestic remedies cannot be attributed to
State organs: "the right to submit a communication to the Human Rights
Committee cannot be used as a substitute for the normal exercise of domestic
remedies in cases where such remedies have not been pursued purely through the
fault of the interested party."
4.5 Additionally, the State party submits that the author has failed to
advance a claim in the sense of the Optional Protocol. As to the alleged
violation of article 19, paragraph 2, the State party contends that the author
has failed to show how his freedom of expression might have been interfered
with and that, on the contrary, each of his submissions and his correspondence
with the education authorities, parliamentarians and government officials show
that he had ample opportunity to make his position known. It further affirms
that "freedom of expression" within the meaning of article 19 cannot be
construed as including a right to exercise a specific teaching activity,
4.6 With respect to the alleged violation of article 26, the State party
affirms that nothing in the file substantiates the author's claim that the
Rectorate of the Academy of Nantes systematically discriminates vis-a-vis the
teaching of Breton and that it discriminated against the author by denying him
regular career development. It notes that Law 51-46 of 11 January 1951
recognized Breton as a regional language and contained measures designed to
encourage its teaching. This law was amended by circular No. 82-261 of
21 June 1982 concerning the teaching of regional languages and cultures in
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