Legislative by-elections for four seats, to be held Feb. 27, are so crucial for the ruling Kuomintang (KMT) that the party is under tremendous pressure to win, President Ma Ying-jeou, who doubles as KMT chairman, said yesterday.

Taiwan's Vice Premier Eric Liluan Chu said Wednesday that the newly launched English Web site FocusTaiwan (focustaiwan.tw) of Taiwan's news wire, the Central News Agency, can help the international community gain a better understanding of Taiwan.

A top executive of Cathay Financial Holding defended his innocence in the case related to several financiers who were allegedly involved with graft and money laundering connected with former President, Chen Shui-bian, and his family.

Married sex workers should get the consensus of their spouses before engaging in sex trade, suggested a study by Ministry of The Interior (MOI). It has created a lot of noises on whether it is against human rights and discrimination laws.

Can you taste the difference between beef jerky and pork jerky? According to the Consumer Protection Commission (CPC), 15 percent of inspected beef jerky sold in Taiwan is made largely from pork meat.

Buses are to be relied on during the Chinese Lunar New Year holiday season, to alleviate traffic jams in the Hsuehshan Tunnel (雪山隧道).

Cancer led the top ten list of labor killers in 2008, the Council of Labor Affairs said yesterday.

Former President, Chen Shui-bian, who has been convicted on corruption charges, was indicted again yesterday on charges of abetting his subordinates to give false testimony.

The Consumer's Foundation (CF) reported yesterday that 10 out of 80 inspected drinking straws are lead-tainted.

The government was standing firm against a flood of criticism regarding the probe into why a village was wiped out by Typhoon Morakot, last summer.