The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navy Pillay, expressed deep concern about the violence against and detention of opposition candidates and their supporters in the aftermath of Sunday’s presidential elections in the Republic of Belarus.

'While I condemn any calls for or resort to violence on the part of some radical factions in the opposition,' Pillay stressed, 'I would like to note that the relevant authorities must fully respect and ensure their political opponents’ rights to peaceful demonstrations and freedom of speech.'

'I am very much concerned by the use of force against demonstrators who were not participating in hostilities, violence against and abduction of opposition candidates and their supporters, detention of opposition activists and human rights defenders, and searches and harassment of independent non-governmental organizations,' the High Commissioner said.

Violence broke out following the 19 December presidential elections resulting in a leading opposition candidate being attacked on his way to a mass rally in Minsk, hospitalized and later abducted by unidentified persons.

According to Reuters, at least four out of the nine candidates who ran against Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko in Sunday's election were being detained by police on Monday.

They included Vladimir Neklyayev, 64, who was taken from his hospital bed by police in the early hours after being earlier beaten by police, his wife said.

Others were Andrei Sannikov, head of the pro-rights Charter 97 group, Grigory Kostusev, head of a nationalist party, and Nikolai Statkevich, 54, a retired colonel who leads a social-democrat party, their aides said.

Early on Monday the state electoral commission said Lukashenko had won 79.7 percent with 100 percent of votes counted. However, the opposition says Lukashenko supporters rigged the vote through fraudulent vote counting.

Attempts by some radical supporters of opposition candidates to break into a government building were followed by mass detentions of opposition candidates and their supporters, human rights activists, journalists and harassment of civil society.

The UN human rights chief called for the immediate release of opposition candidates and their supporters who did not call for and were not involved in any violence.

She also called upon the Government of Belarus to ensure that human rights defenders, journalists and civil society organizations are free from any harassment. 'I urge all parties to refrain from violence and demonstrate full respect for human rights,' she said.