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Saturday, January 29, 2011

Canada pushes for Egypt reforms

More Canadian rallies planned

Meanwhile, Canadians across the country were planning to stage rallies on Saturday in support of the pro-democracy movement in Egypt.
Demonstrations were planned in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver.
On Friday, Cannon told Canadians not to travel to Egypt. He said those who have no choice but to go to the North African country during the political unrest should exercise extreme caution.
Both Canada and the United States urged the Mubarak government to limit the use of force against thousands of protesters who are demanding that he step down.
Foreign Affairs said there are approximately 6,500 Canadians in Egypt, with another 80,000 to 90,000 Canadian tourists travelling to Egypt every year.
Egyptian activist Mohamed ElBaradei said on Saturday that the only way to end the unrest that is destabilizing Egypt is for Mubarak to step down and set a framework for transition of power.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner offered to help in a transitional government and promised to press on with attempts to force Mubarak to step down.
"I will continue to participate in whatever it takes to make sure that the Mubarak regime should leave. I think there is a consensus here in Egypt, in every part of society, that this is a regime that is dictatorial, that has failed to deliver on economic, social or political fronts and that we need a new beginning, an Egypt that is free and democratic and we need to go through a transitional period," he said.
ElBaradei has said Egypt needs a new constitution that would better respect human rights and put checks on power.
Mubarak, in a speech to the nation late Friday, said he would not step down but would instead fire the cabinet of Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif and appoint a new one.
On Saturday, Mubarak appointed a vice-president for the first time in his 30-year rule, his intelligence chief Omar Suleimank.
U.S. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley was critical of Mubarak's decision to entirely overhaul the cabinet.
"The Egyptian government can't reshuffle the deck and then stand pat," Crowley said in a message on Twitter.
Salil Shetty, the head of Amnesty International, told The Associated Press that Mubarak's decision to fire the cabinet wouldn't quell the anti-government protests that have shaken the country for five days.
"The idea of changing your cabinet is a bit of a joke. People are very clearly saying they want very fundamental change, constitutional change," he said.

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