6.2 The Committee considered that the question whether article 17 of the Covenant protects the right to choose and change one's own name and, if so, whether the State party's refusal to have the authors' surnames changed was arbitrary should be dealt with on the merits. It considered that the authors had fulfilled the requirement under article 5, paragraph 2 (b), of the Optional Protocol, noting that they had appealed the matter to the highest administrative tribunal and that no other remedies remained. On 8 July 1993, the Committee therefore declared the communication admissible in so far as it might raise issues under article 17 of the Covenant. would create unnecessary uncertainty and confusion, in both a social and administrative sense, if a formal change of name could be effected too easily. In this connection, the State party invokes an obligation to protect the interests of others. The State party submits that in the present case, the authors failed to meet the criteria that would allow a change in their surname and that they wished to adopt names which have a special significance in Indian society. "Granting a request of this kind would therefore be at odds with the policy of the Netherlands Government of refraining from any action that could be construed as interference with the internal affairs of other cultures". The State party concludes that, taking into account all interests involved, it cannot be said that the decision not to grant the change of name was arbitrary. The State party's submission on the merits and the authors' comments thereon 7.1 The State party, by submission of 24 February 1994, argues that article 17 of the Covenant does not protect the right to choose and change one's surname. It refers to the travaux préparatoires, in which no indication can be found that article 17 should be given such a broad interpretation, but on the basis of which it appears that States should be given considerable freedom to determine how the principles of article 17 should be applied. The State party also refers to the Committee's General Comment on article 17, in which it is stated that the protection of privacy is necessarily relative. Finally, the State party refers to the Committee's prior jurisprudence 1 and submits that, whenever the intervention of authorities was legitimate according to domestic legislation, the Committee has only found a violation of article 17 when the intervention was also in violation of another provision of the Covenant. 8. In their comments on the State party's submission, the authors contest the State party's view that article 17 does not protect their right to choose and change their own surnames. They argue that the rejection of their request to have their surnames changed, deeply affects their private life, since it prevents them from practising as Hindu-priests. They claim that the State party should have provided in its legislation for the change of name in situations similar to that of the authors, and that the State party should have taken into account the consequences of the rejection of their request. 9.1 During its 51st session, the Committee began its examination of the merits of the communication and decided to request clarifications from the State party with respect to the regulations governing the change of names. The State party, by submission of 3 October 1994, explains that the Dutch Civil Code provides that anyone desiring a change of surname can file a request with the Minister of Justice. The Code does not specify in what cases such a request should be granted. The ministerial policy has been that a change of surname can only be allowed in exceptional cases. In principle, a person should keep the name which (s)he acquires at birth, in order to maintain legal and social stability. 7.2 Subsidiarily, the State party argues that the refusal to grant the authors a formal change of surname was neither unlawful nor arbitrary. The State party refers to its submission on admissibility and submits that the decision was taken in accordance with the relevant Guidelines, which were published in the Government Gazette of 9 May 1990 and based on the provisions of the Civil Code. The decision not to grant the authors a change of surname was thus pursuant to domestic legislation and regulations. 9.2 To prevent arbitrariness, the policy with respect to the change of surname has been made public by issuing 'Guidelines for the change of surname'. The State party recalls that the guidelines indicate that a change of surname will be granted when the current surname is indecent or ridiculous, so common that it has lost its distinctive character, or not Dutch-sounding. In exceptional cases, the change of surname can be authorized outside these categories, for instance in cases where the denial of the change of surname would threaten the applicant's mental or physical well-being. A change of surname could also be allowed if it would be unreasonable to refuse the request, taking into account the interests 7.3 As to a possible arbitrariness of the decision, the State party observes that the regulations referred to in the previous paragraph were issued precisely to prevent arbitrariness and to maintain the necessary stability in this field. The State party contends that it 1 See the Committee's Views with regard to communications No. 35/1978 (Aumeeruddy-Cziffra v. Mauritius, Views adopted on 9 April 1981) and No. 74/1980 (Estrella v. Uruguay, Views adopted on 29 March 1983). 74