E/CN.4/2004/21 page 8 the European Union, and foreigners in certain specified situations. She queried the exact meaning of “access” since access went beyond mere provision of the service. She cited the case of undocumented migrants who would be wary of contacting public defenders, and the matter of literacy which limited the ability of some to access legal services. She explained that the bar was working on ensuring true access by educating and disseminating information about the legal system, providing clinics in town halls and providing on-site advice at the Court. In Paris, SOS-avocats provided free-of-charge legal services by phone and a “solidarity bus” provided mobile legal services in different neighbourhoods in the city. 32. The discussions on the theme of the administration of justice continued at the fourth meeting of the Working Group. 33. Ms. Taylor-Thompson stated that counsel should be provided free to the accused in the criminal justice system, but that it was also important for counsel to be adequately paid. 34. The observer for Nigeria asked what, if any, deterrent measures could be taken against incompetent defence counsel at the international level. He agreed that States should provide a competent public legal aid system and encouraged States to do so, but he cautioned that counsel must be competent and effective. 35. The observer for Costa Rica encouraged the experts to examine the possibility of incorporating work already taking place on the administration of justice in parallel human rights mechanisms such as the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and with respect to the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights. He added that education was not only important for those administering justice but for society as a whole (rights under law, where to exercise those rights, etc.). 36. The observer for Zambia read a short statement about racial discrimination in international trade and recommended that the Working Group consider the question of trade and human rights. 37. Mr. Martins said that it was important to keep a focus on discrimination in the administration of justice faced by people of African descent since the mandate of the Working Group was not poverty or injustice in general, but people of African descent, that is, those victims affected by slavery and the slave trade. 38. Ms. Gupta said that it was important that justice system workers such as lawyers and social workers be reflective of the client base. It was necessary to keep statistics and databases on who exactly was being arrested, convicted and sentenced in order to identify at what point racial bias entered. 39. The observer for China said that it was important to change mentality in order to change action and he recommended that further study be conducted along those lines. 40. Then observer for the African Society of Comparative and International Law said that it would be useful to consider case studies from different parts of the world. He added that poverty was a root cause of discrimination faced by people of African descent in the justice system.