With millions turning their eyes to Beijing for the opening of the 2008 Olympic Games, protesters in B.C. are ramping up their efforts to use the games to spotlight their causes.
A candlelight vigil was held outside the Chinese consulate Thursday night.
The vigil coincided with the beginning of a 24-hour hunger strike.
Student protester Randy Galawan says the opening of the Beijing Games is a perfect springboard for action.
"The world is listening right now," he said.
"The world is looking at a China and we need to speak with a loud voice and doing this is a way to speak with a loud voice."
Thursday's action is part of a large series of protests across Canada to highlight what demonstrators feel are human rights violations by the Chinese government - and to speak out against the country's heavy-handed rule in Tibet.
Groups including the Falun Dafa Association and the Canada Tibet Committee held a rally Thursday afternoon at the Vancouver Art Gallery, followed by a march to the Chinese consulate.
Wednesday, police arrested a pro-Tibetan demonstrator after he tried to encase his arm into a bucket of fresh cement inside a replica tank.
Human rights demonstrators say a variety of actions will be held at Chinese government facilities around the world for the duration of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
