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Germany and Great Britain, for their part, demanded answers about the whereabouts of the prominent opposition figure Maryja Kalesnikava, who, according to supporters, was kidnapped in the center of Minsk along with a representative of the Coordinating Council and the executive secretary.
The Coordination Council was created by the opposition to seek a peaceful transfer of power to Lukashenko’s main rival in the elections, without Sviatlan Cichanouskaya acknowledging the 26-year-old leader’s declaration that he had won 80 percent of the presidential elections of the August 9. votes.
The Interior Ministry said 633 people were arrested Sunday for illegal mass demonstrations. It is one of the largest waves of arrests during the mass demonstrations that began after the elections.
“The EU hopes that the Belarusian authorities … will immediately release all people detained for political reasons before and after the rigged presidential elections on August 9,” said the bloc’s foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell.
“The EU will impose sanctions on those responsible for the violence, repression and falsification of the electoral results,” he added.
Concerned for Kalesnikava, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called for “clarity on the whereabouts and release of all Belarusian political prisoners.”
British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab added: “He is very concerned for the well-being of Mary Kalesnikava in Belarus. For the Lukashenko regime, his safe return must become a top priority. The regime must stop brutalizing protesters, release political prisoners and enter into dialogue with the opposition. “
Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne called for “the release of the detainees, including members of the opposition and journalists.”
“The recent arbitrary arrests and the repression of key opposition voices are unacceptable,” he stressed.
S.Cichanouskaja withdrew from the EU member state Lithuania following election pressure.
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