Articles of the Optional Protocol: 1 and 5 (2) (b) 1. The authors of the communication (initial submission dated 10 June 1988 and subsequent correspondence)are E. P., F. W., D. B., L.G., O. B. and A. H., all citizens of Colombia, residing in the islands of San Andrés, Providence and Catalina, which form anarchipelago 300 miles north of mainland Colombia. They invoke articles 1, 2, 25, 26 and 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and claim that, as members of an overwhelmingly English-speaking Protestant population, they are subjected to violations of their rights by Colombia, which has sovereignty over the islands. 2.1 The authors state that, in 1819, Colombia asserted sovereignty over the archipelago under the doctrine of uti possidetis and consolidated its administration by military force against the will of the islanders. The authors claim that Colombia has been violating their rights ever since. 2.2 According to the authors, recent Colombian legislation has led to the dispossession of many islanders of their land. As part of a project to "Colombianize" the islands, the Government provides subsidies and incentives to mainland Colombians, particularly to families of four or more, to settle in the archipelago. The process of registering land ownership (Juicio de pertenencia) favors mainlanders by permitting them to post their claims in Spanish at the court house or even in Spanish language newspapers in far-away towns, such as Bogotá or Barranquilla. Indigenous landowners who cannot afford a lawyer, or cannot understand Spanish, or are simply unaware of claims against their land, are in effect victims of expropriation by mainland Colombians. Already 40,000 mainland Colombians and other foreigners have settled on the 44 square kilometre island of San Andrés. 2.3 The authors assert that the overpopulation resulting from the Government's policies has caused severe environmental damage. New developments, including more than 30 hotels, 10 banks and 700 imported-goods stores, have put such demands on the water table that an artificial drought has been created, making farming impossible, thus destroying one of the islanders' traditional livelihoods. The Government has permitted the destruction of the mangrove swamps, formerly rich sources of lobster, fish, crabs and crayfish, by allowing electric power plants unlimited access for dumping hot, polluted water there. Environmental pro-tection laws are allegedly selectively applied to islanders. 2.4 The authors assert that the Government has granted fishing rights and other concessions to Honduras and other countries without regard to native interests. This has deprived the islanders of another traditional means of survival. 2.5 Spanish has been made the official language. Education is provided only in Spanish and native children are rejected by the schools if they fail to learn Spanish. Public libraries offer books only in Spanish. Natives are presumed to know Spanish in Court. Islanders allegedly are often harassed or even arrested by the police for speaking English in public. Disciplinary actions for these abuses are rare and never result in more than the transfer of the responsible officers; the abuses continue with their replacements. All the mass media are in Spanish. These facts are alleged to constitute violations of article 27 of the Covenant. 2.6 The authors claim that native islanders suffer pervasive employment discrimination. Only 15% of the workers in the private sector are indigenous. Host businesses, and at least one Government agency, La Registraduría de Instrumentos Públicos, hire no natives at all. Natives earn less than 5% of the islands' total income. Natives are also denied equal access to public utilities such as water, electricity and telecom-munications. The foregoing, in the authors' opinion, constitutes violations of article 26 of the Covenant. 88