Taipei - Taipei is filling up potholes, removing the sensitive Taiwanese national flags from roadsides and holding police drills to prepare for next week's Taiwan-China dialogue.

Hundreds of policemen are combing each floor of the Grand Hotel, venue of the November 3-7 dialogue, and its surrounding hills to check for bombs and security gaps.

The island will mobilize 7,000 policemen to maintain order and assign 40 bodyguards to protect Chinese negotiator Chen Yunlin's safety. Chen will arrive on November 3 leading a 60-member delegation.

The dialogue will be the most important talks between Taiwan and China in a half century. President Ma Ying-jeou called it a milestone in Taiwan-China ties.

Taipei - Taiwan Friday opened its 2008 Taipei International Travel Fair with the aim of attracting more foreign and Chinese tourists.

Sixty-two countries and regions have set up 1,206 booths at the four-day fair with Chinese exhibitors occupying 256 booths, nearly four times more than the second-largest exhibitor, Japan, with 69.

China sent a 290-strong delegation to the Taipei World Trade Centre, hoping to boost its own tourism.

Taipei  - Taiwan's pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) announced Friday it was to hold a three-day sit-in protest against the planned visit of top Chinese negotiator with Taiwan, Chen Yunlin.

The announcement came as a group of Chinese officials arrived in Taiwan Friday to prepare for Chen's November 3-7 visit, who was to hold talks with his Taiwanese counterpart Chiang Pin-kung on cross-strait transport, postal and food safety cooperation.

"Beginning from November 3, all people are invited to wear the yellow ribbons and join us in a sit-in protest outside the parliament building for three days to jointly safeguard Taiwan's sovereignty," the DPP said in a statement posted on its website.

Taipei - Taiwan stocks rose nearly 4 per cent Friday on an overnight rally on Wall Street and in expectation of expanded Taiwan-China exchanges.

The Taiex index soared 187.02 points, or 3.99 per cent, to close at 4,870.6.

Analysts attributed the surge not only to Thursday's rally on Wall Street, where the three major indices rose more than 2 per cent, but also to China's promise to ease restrictions on mainlanders visiting Taiwan.

Taipei - Former vice premier Chiou I-jen has been arrested on accusations he embezzled a half-million US dollars during his time as Taiwan's intelligence chief, court officials said Friday.

"When he was secretary general of the National Security Council in 2004, the defendant asked the Foreign Ministry for 500,000 US dollars to finance a secret diplomatic mission, which actually was already completed with no more financial need," said Taipei District Court Judge Huang Chun-ming.

Taipei - Taiwan opened the 2008 Taipei International Travel Fair Friday with the aim of attracting more foreign and Chinese tourists.

Sixty-two countries and regions have set up 1,206 booths at the four-day fair with Chinese exhibitors occupying 256 booths, nearly four times more than the second-largest exhibitor, Japan, with 69 booths.

China has sent a 290-strong delegation to the four-day travel fair at the Taipei World Trade Centre, hoping to boost tourism from Taiwan to China.