Taipei - Taiwan's former president Chen Shui-bian was expected to be indicted on corruption charges Friday afternoon, becoming the first Taiwanese leader to be charged.

The Supreme Prosecutor's Office announced it will hold a news conference at 3:15 pm (0715GMT), and it is expected to announce the indictment of Chen and possibly members of his family.

Taiwan press said the indictment document is 800 pages, and Chen is likely to be indicted on four charges of corruption, which could result in 30 years imprisonment or a life term.

Taipei  - The rivalry between Taiwan and China has eased significantly in the past year, following the return to power of the Beijing-friendly Nationalist Party or Kuomintang (KMT).

But it will be difficult for the two sides to achieve a real truce, given the "one China" principle of Beijing, and Taipei's insistence on political sovereignty, analysts said.

Many are also skeptical over whether Beijing is willing to allow Taipei to remain independent indefinitely, though it has been on good terms with the KMT government.

Taipei - Taiwan's cabinet on Thursday approved amendments to a law that would greatly ease current restrictions on Chinese spouses living on the island.

"With the amendments, mainland spouses will be able to get identify cards here in six years instead of eight years as required currently," said Lai Shin-yuan, chairwoman of the Mainland Affairs Council, the island's top China policy planning body, at a news conference.

She said the revisions, which still need approval from parliament, would also allow Chinese spouses of Taiwanese people to work immediately after they enter Taiwan legally.

Taipei - Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (TSMC), the world's largest contract chip maker, saw its November sales fall nearly 40 per cent year-on-year due to the global slump, the company said Wednesday.

In November, TSMC sales totalled 19.3 billion Taiwan dollars (585 million US dollars), down 32 per cent from October and down 36 per cent from November 2007, the firm said in a statement.

January-November revenues totaled 308.6 billion Taiwan dollars, up 8.5 per cent from the same period of 2007.

Taipei - Taiwan's stocks rose 4.16 per cent on Wednesday, led by tech and financia

Taipei  - Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama called on China to respect the Tibetan people's human right on Wednesday - Human Rights Day - in a message to a rights forum held in Taiwan.

The Dalai Lama sent the message to the international forum on human rights held by the Kaohsiung City government because he was unable to attend the seminar, attended by human rights activists from a dozen countries.