A/HRC/4/40 page 27 The practice of diplomatic assurances is acceptable only if the very stringent conditions mentioned in the Legal Opinion are met. On the contrary, the practice of “reverse diplomatic assurances”, as described in the current report, constitutes a serious violation of international human rights law. 76. The Working Group calls upon all States to join political and technical efforts in order to ensure and guarantee the basic needs and rights of people in detention. The Group considers that the minimum conditions are the following: the protection of the security, health and nutritional needs of the detainees and of their rights to have access to an adequate legal defence and to a fair trial. VI. RECOMMENDATIONS Growth in prison populations, particularly in developed countries 77. Having been made aware of an increase in the number of people being detained around the world, particularly in developed countries, the majority of the detainees being in pretrial detention, the Working Group recommends that this recent growth in prison populations should be studied and debated with a view to developing measures favouring respect of the rights of the detainees. Detention on remand 78. Regarding detention on remand, the Working Group addresses to States the following recommendations: (a) be served; (b) Time spent in pretrial detention should be credited towards the sentence to Detainees acquitted in first instance should be immediately released; (c) Domestic legislations should establish the maximum duration of pretrial detention, which should not exceed the sanction established for the offence attributed to the accused; (d) Effective remedies to ensure compliance with limits on the duration of remand detention should be put in place. Alternatives to deprivation of liberty 79. States should review their legislation in order to establish or enlarge the scope of alternatives to deprivation of liberty as a sanction for criminal offences. International transfer of detainees 80. With regard to the international transfer of detainees, particularly in the context of countering terrorism, the Working Group recommends: