A/HRC/8/4 page 12 to appear on civil registers, unemployment, ill-health, inadequate education and marginalization. Each one of these deprivations exacerbates the others to form a vicious circle of abject poverty, which is compounded by a strong tendency for poverty to perpetuate itself, thus forming an infernal mill that prevents people from exercising any of their human rights. The Special Rapporteur considered this issue in his former capacity as Special Rapporteur for the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities (E/CN.4/Sub.2/1996/13). The most serious obstacles barring access to justice for the very poor include: (a) their indigent condition; (b) illiteracy or lack of education and information; (c) the complexity of procedures; (d) mistrust, not to say fear, stemming from their experience of the justice system, either because they frequently find themselves in the position of accused, or because their own complaints are turned against them; (e) the slow pace of justice, despite the fact that their petitions often relate to very sensitive aspects of life (such as return of children) which need to be dealt with rapidly; and (f) in many countries, the fact that they are not allowed to be accompanied or represented by support organizations which could also bring criminal indemnification proceedings. It should be stressed that, while this issue and its implications for human rights have been addressed essentially in relation to guarantees protecting the right to a defence (designation of a court-appointed lawyer or officially appointed defence counsel, free legal advice and representation) and safeguarding the principle of equality before the law, they are in fact much more complex, as has been pointed out by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. We need only add to the long list of human rights affected by the total impunity with which they can be violated, as illustrated by the unpunished killings of street children and vagrants by death squads. When the authorities attempt to identify them, they say that many are not listed on official registers; in other words, legally, they do not exist. 3. Barriers relating to information 27. Access to justice can also be hampered by clients’ ignorance of their rights and all matters relating to their case. As a minimum, they need to know all the details of the charges and of the case: evidence, time periods and other parties involved. The right to be informed of the nature and cause of the charges made should be realized in a detailed, prompt and comprehensible manner. The Human Rights Committee has found that the right to be informed of the charge promptly requires that information be given as soon as the person is formally charged with a criminal offence under domestic. law,24 or the individual is publicly named as such. The principle of equality of arms requires that each party should have the information concerning the case and adequate facilities to participate in the proceedings, which means access to documents and other evidence, including materials25 that the prosecution plans to offer in court against the accused or that are exculpatory. 24 CDH, Comunicaciones Nos. 1128/2002, Márques de Morais c. Angola, párr. 5.4 y 253/1987, Kelly c. Jamaica, párr. 5.8. 25 Vid. observaciones finales del Comité de Derechos Humanos al informe de Canadá, CCPR/C/CAN/CO/5, párr. 13.