VANCOUVER - A large and boisterous crowd is protesting the visit of former U.S. vice-president Dick Cheney outside one of Vancouver's most exclusive clubs.

Cheney is in town to promote his new book "In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir" during an exclusive $500-a-ticket dinner at the Vancouver Club.

Protesters are waving placards, chanting slogans and booing anybody who enters the club.

They accuse Cheney of war crimes for authorizing and endorsing the use of water boarding and sleep deprivation against detainees while serving as vice-president in the George W. Bush administration.

Derrick O'Keefe, co-chair of the StopWar Coalition, says many protesters are taking a stand against war crimes.

This past weekend, Human Rights Watch urged the federal government to bring criminal charges against Cheney.