8.3 As to the State party’s argument that the author is acting on behalf of third parties, the Committee noted that the author claimed personally to be a victim, within the meaning of article 1 of the Optional Protocol, of an alleged violation of his rights under the Covenant, by virtue of the Supreme Court’s decision affirming his conviction for unlawful fishing. As to the position of further individuals, the Committee recalled its jurisprudence that there is, in principle, no objection to a group of individuals, who claim to be similarly affected, collectively to submit a communication about alleged breaches of their rights.9 In the present case, however, to the extent that the communication could be understood to have been brought on behalf of other individuals or groups of individuals, the Committee noted that the author had provided neither authorization by such persons nor any arguments to the effect that he would be in the position to represent before the Committee other persons without their authorization. Consequently, the Committee found the communication inadmissible under article 1 of the Optional Protocol, to the extent it could be understood to have been submitted on behalf of other persons than the author personally. fact that these actions were brought by First Nations parties rather than the author and that their outcome would have no bearing on the author’s conviction in 1985 for unlawful fishing, the Committee considered that insofar as the author might individually benefit from such a remedy, the remedy was unreasonably prolonged in relation to him. The Committee was therefore satisfied that the author, in pursuing his own case through to the Supreme Court, exhausted domestic remedies in respect of the claimed aboriginal rights to fish, which are an integral part of his culture. 8.6 On 1 April 2003, the Committee therefore decided that the communication was admissible to the extent that the author was being deprived, under the sanction of criminal law, of the ability to exercise, individually and in community with other members of his aboriginal community, his aboriginal fishing rights which are an integral part of his culture. State party’s merits submission 9.1 By submission of 23 March 2004, the State party comments on the merits of the communication. Contesting the author’s claims of violations of articles 2 (2) and 27 of the Covenant in his case, the State party submits that the author is able to enjoy, individually and in community with the other members of the Hiawatha First Nation, the aspects of his culture related to fishing. 8.4 Concerning the State party’s arguments that on-going negotiations might provide an effective remedy, the Committee referred to its jurisprudence that remedies that must be exhausted for the purposes of the Optional Protocol are, primarily, judicial remedies. Negotiations proceeding on the basis of, inter alia, extralegal considerations including political factors cannot generally be regarded as being of analogous nature to these remedies. Even if such negotiations were to be regarded as an additional effective remedy to be exhausted in specific circumstances,10 the Committee recalled, with reference to article 50 of the Covenant, that the State party is responsible, in terms of the Covenant, for the acts of provincial authorities as much as federal authorities. In the light of the absence of a decision, to date, by the provincial authorities, on whether to accept the First Nations’ claim for negotiations, the Committee would in any event regard this remedy as being unreasonably prolonged. Accordingly, on the current state of negotiations, the Committee did not, on either view, regard its competence to consider the communication excluded by virtue of article 5, paragraph 2 (b), of the Optional Protocol. 9.2 The State party recalls that in the 1923 Williams Treaty, the author’s First Nation agreed to give up its aboriginal rights to fish, except for a treaty right to fish in the reserves set aside for them. The Ontario Court has held that this treaty right to fish extends to the waters that are adjacent to the reserves and the Government has interpreted this to mean up to 100 yards from shore in waters fronting the reserve boundaries. In these waters the members of the Hiawatha First Nation do not have to comply with Ontario’s normal fishing restrictions, such as closed seasons and catch limits and have a right to fish year-round for food, ceremonial and social purposes. In this context, the State party points out that neither the author nor the Hiawatha First Nation depends on fishing for their livelihood. It is said that the members of the Hiawatha First Nation (of whom 184 members live on the reserve and 232 outside) have tourism as their main source of income and that recreational fishing is a significant attraction for tourists to the area. The fish of Rice Lake, on the shores of which the Hiawatha First Nation lives, are said to be among the most abundant in the area. 8.5 The same applied in relation to the argument that actions are pending in the Federal Court and in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. Besides the 9.3 The State party states that in addition the author can obtain a recreational fishing licence enabling him to fish in the lakes and rivers of the Kawartha Lakes region surrounding the Hiawatha First Nation reserve from May to November. The 9 See Ominayak et al. v. Canada, Case No. 167/1984, Views adopted on 26 March 1990, at paragraph 32.1. 10 See Jonassen et al. v. Norway, Case No. 942/2000, Decision adopted on 25 October 2002. 130