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Add human rights to your shopping list at Coquitlam Centre

You can combine shopping with human rights at Coquitlam Centre on Friday.

You can combine shopping with human rights at Coquitlam Centre on Friday.

That's the day members of the Tri-Cities Amnesty International group have chosen to raise awareness about human rights with a focus on the issue of child labour, the plight of Iranian activists and Egyptian protesters.

Since Jan. 25, when protests calling for political reform began in Egypt, violent clashes have left at least five people dead and thousands injured. According to an Amnesty International report, "While security forces failed to protect people in the streets, they turned their attention instead to a renewed crackdown on journalists and activists."

Military police detained two members of AI's staff, a representative of Human Rights Watch and others including Canadian journalists from CBC and the Globe and Mail. AI reports that this isn't the first time such intimidation tactics have been used. Egyptian authorities have a history of orchestratingviolencebetween protesters in order to disrupt and disperse protests.

Meanwhile, Amnesty activist and Coquitlam resident Joy Silver says child labour continues to be an issue in many developing countries.

"While Canadian children for the most part have time to play and are not rushed into growing up, for many thousands of children in other countries, play is an unknown concept," Silver says.

Children as young as five and six years old are pushed out to work and even sold as virtual slaves to industries looking for cheap labour. The children are denied education and frequently suffer injuries, and are denied access to health care.

Look for the Amnesty International Booth near London Drugs in Coquitlam Centre mall from noon to 9 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 11. You can sign petitions, become a member of Amnesty International and if you make a donation of at least $2, you will receive a chocolate bar and a chance to enter a draw for a gift basket.

For information, call 604-941-2606 or 604-464-7706.