A/HRC/10/19 page 20 and impartiality, and/or due process of law is denied. These two circumstances are against the basic human rights recognized in the new Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Therefore, prisoners of conscience are basically individuals whose human rights are systematically denied. 94. Given the fact that fundamental rights such as liberty and personal integrity are being affected in detention, the release of prisoners of conscience, even progressive, should start as soon as possible. Release must be without any conditions that may result in new ways of diminishing the enjoyment of human rights, such as written statements renouncing the right to political participation or campaign. On the other hand, parallel to release, immediate measures should be taken to avoid any cruel treatment, improve conditions of detention and ensure urgent medical treatment. 95. In his report (A/63/341), the Special Rapporteur recommended that the prisoners be released in the following order of priority: (a) Elderly prisoners; (b) Prisoners with health problems; (c) Prominent members of political organizations and ethnic leaders; (d) Long-standing prisoners; (e) Members of religious orders; (f) Women who have children; (g) Prisoners transferred to forced labour camps; (h) Unconvicted prisoners; (i) Prisoners without a criminal record; (j) Prisoners held in jails remote from their homes. 96. In September 2008, the Government released 9,000 prisoners, although only 7 were prisoners of conscience, of whom one was rearrested a day later. In February 2009, the Government released 6,313 prisoners, but only 29 were prisoners of conscience. These releases, although encouraging, lack any proportionality with the total number of prisoners of conscience. Therefore, these measures cannot be seen as progressive. (iii) Third core human rights element: armed forces 97. In his report (A/63/341), the Special Rapporteur recommended that a number of measures be adopted by the military and the police in order to improve the human rights situation in the country. These recommendations relate to very serious issues that should be stressed again. In this regard, the military should: