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"Make peace, not war" is the sentiment of many Chinese people as Valentine's Day approaches, and with it, either war or peace.
On Feb. 14, the weapons inspectors in Iraq will submit a second report to the United Nations Security Council.
A middle-aged man surnamed Xu selling newspapers near the Xuanwumen subway station in Beijing has done good sales these days, due to the heated Iraqi issue.
"Most people hope the United States will not attack Iraq, for those who will really suffer are common Iraqis if war breaks out," Xu said Thursday, showing an article in the Beijing Youth Daily.
The article reads that on Feb. 7, many Iraqis looked on the photos of war victims in the remains of a bomb shelter near the capital. The shelter was bombed by the United States during the Gulf War on Feb. 13, 1991 and 408 people were killed, mostly women and children.
A daily patron of the newspaper seller, Xu Shuyu, who is a retired teacher living nearby, is deeply worried about the situation in Iraq.
"Both sides suffer when war starts," he said. "The disaster will destroy both Iraqi civilians and American soldiers, both oil in the Middle East and the global economy, both ancient civilization in the region and peace in the world."
"Several NATO countries have clearly expressed opposing a military attack against Iraq, which proves that most countries of the world long for peace and stability," said Han Jiliang, an experienced Chinese trader, who has also closely followed the issue.
With Iraq enshrouded with looming war, some Chinese people complain it has brought effects too close to home.
A man, named Shao, said he had to pay more money for his recent Spring Festival journey, because of the hiked petroleum price.
Shao said China has seen a rise in both the oil price and air ticket price recently, and he believed more awful influences will follow if war breaks out.
The petroleum crisis in the Middle East brought another case of jacked-up prices in south China's Guangdong Province. In its capital city of Guangzhou, the price of liquefied petroleum gas surged from 38 yuan (US$4.6) per bottle, the bottom price in 2002, to 78 yuan (US$9.43) per bottle at the end of 2002.
The clouds of war also shook China's stocks market. On the first stock exchange date of China's lunar new year, both the Shanghai stock market and the Shenzhen stock market saw ups and downs due to the fluctuating situation in Iraq.
Qian Weihai, an assayer at Jinxin Securities Research Institute, said the fast growth of China's stock market will speed up the process of its joining the international stock market, and as a result, the fluctuation of the global situation will bring a direct influence to China's stock market.
Working in Iraq as a representative of a Chinese company, Ding Xiaogen just returned to China for the New Year.
Ding said among those returned Chinese businessmen working in Iraq, most have delayed their return date to Iraq due to the dangerous situation there, though the delay will surely cut off some deals.
"We all hope peace will come soon, so we can go back to our business," said Ding.
There are more than 200 Chinese people like Ding working in Iraq in over 40 Chinese companies. Now, most of them have been recalled home.
Many Chinese people also made their peaceful wishes on the Internet. During the past couple of days, one special picture on a Chinese web site has been clicked the most -- it catches the leave-taking of a US Army nurse going to war. Beside her is a sad husband and a tearful daughter.
If war breaks between the United States and Iraq, many more Americans will have to part with their families to go to war, and millions of Iraqi people will lose their homes, which will all bring sadness to the whole planet, said words left by a Chinese Internet fan right under the picture.
(Xinhua News Agency February 14, 2003)
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