The European Union (EU) must be “firm and united” against the “desperate and illegitimate” administration of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Ylva Johansson, the European Commissioner for home affairs, said.
The EU official’s statements came shortly after the tensions at the Poland-Belarus border.
Hundreds of migrants and refugees are trapped at Belarus’ border with Poland, amid tension between the two countries.
Poland says it has stopped attempts by the large group to enter the country. It has also accused Belarus of pushing migrants to the border.
The incident has led to international condemnation from the EU, US and NATO and renewed threats of sanctions.
Crackdown on Opponents Increased in Belarus
The EU has criticised Belarus over its crackdown against rights organisations, social media users, and journalists.
More than 60 searches of the homes and offices of Belarusian human rights organisations
and their staff reported between 14 and 16 July.
Documents and IT equipment, including laptops, mobile phones and computers
seized during searches.
Amnesty International also reported the closure of 46 human rights and other civil society
organisations in the EU country.
So far, 100 organisations have closed across the country.
Since his election as head of the state last year, Belarusian President Alexander
Lukashenko, who has been in power since 1994, has launched an unprecedented
repression campaign against rights activists.
The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Viasna has documented at least 35,000 arbitrary arrests, 608 political prisoners and about 1,800 reports of torture.