Jump to full article: AP, 2009-01-19
Intro: SHANGHAI - CHINA'S love-hate relationship with tobacco is flaring up in Shanghai, where local lawmakers are considering banning patriotic billboards advertising cigarettes.
The billboards, carrying the expression 'Love China', are a play on one variation of the word China in Chinese, 'Chunghwa', which is also the name of a top cigarette brand made by Shanghai Tobacco (Group).
The Chinese characters for both are identical.
The scarlet 'Love China' billboards and posters feature a gleaming golden picture of Beijing's historic Tiananmen Gate, the entrance to the Forbidden City, but no images of cigarettes.
They also carry the warning: 'Smoking can damage your health' - signaling that the slogan refers both to China and to the cigarette brand.
The topic cropped up last week during the annual session of the local legislature, when some lawmakers proposed that the billboards be banned, the state-run newspaper Shanghai Daily and other reports said.
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