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| Jan Peter Balkenende |
Jan Peter Balkenende
Dr. Jan Peter Balkenende
(
- May 7, 1956) is Prime Minister of The Netherlands since July 22, 2002.
2002, António Vitorino and Jan Peter Balkenende.]]
Jan Peter Balkenende (legally Jan Pieter Balkenende) began his career on the staff of the research institute of the political party Christen Democratisch Appèl (CDA) and as a city councillor in Amstelveen. He later became a special professor of Christian-Social Thought at the Free University of Amsterdam (Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam).
Balkenende first entered the Tweede Kamer (lower house) of the Netherlands Parliament on May 19, 1998, while the CDA was in opposition. He became the CDA's financial spokesman and was also involved with social affairs, justice, and internal affairs. In this role he advocated a substational reduction of the national debt and sound public finances.
He was elected chairman of the parliamentary CDA on October 1 2001 in succession to Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. On November 3 2001 he was appointed lijsttrekker (head of the list of candidates) for the CDA in the May 2002 parliamentary elections. These elections became historic when rightwing populist Pim Fortuyn was assassinated and the election campaign was halted. The result of the election restored the CDA's former position as the largest political party in the Dutch parliament.
On 4 July 2002 Queen Beatrix asked Balkenende to form a new government, in the wake of the resignation of Prime Minister Wim Kok. This cabinet is known as Balkenende I. This government (including the LPF party of slain politician Pim Fortuyn) fell after just 86 days in office because of infighting in the LPF which destabilised the government. After early elections in 2003 Balkenende formed his second cabinet Balkenende II with the conservative liberal VVD and the progressive liberal D66. Again a center-right coalition. Balkenende's policies centered around reform of the Dutch public services, reducing crime, a tough immigration policy and historically large cuts in public spending. The measures gave rise to large public anger and bad results in opinion polls for his CDA party. Nonetheless, his party remained the largest Dutch delegation in the European Parliament after the European Elections, beating the general expectation of a huge loss in parliamentary seats.
European Parliament]
On the first of July 2004 he took up the rotating presidency of the European Union.
Family background
Balkenende currently resides with his wife, Bianca, and his daughter Amelie in Capelle aan den IJssel. He rented an apartment in The Hague, which caused a political row since it cost the Dutch government 9,000 euro a month, whilst his prime ministerial residence was renovated. Only a few months after Balkenende took residence a fire destroyed the first floor of the house, forcing Balkenende to again look for alternative housing.
Trivia
Balkenende is often called "Harry Potter" by the Dutch inhabitants because of his resemblance to the storybook character. On June 4, 2005, this comparison was made by Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel De Gucht in the Flemish newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws. This caused a small diplomatic controversy, and the Belgian ambassador had to apologise to Bernard Bot, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs. De Gucht stated that "Balkenende is a mix of Harry Potter and a petty rigid bourgeois mentality" (brave stijfburgerlijkheid).
External links
- [http://www.minaz.nl/english/prime_minister/] official website prime minister
Balkenende, Jan Peter
Balkenende
Balkenende, Jan Peter
Balkenende
ja:ヤン・ペーター・バルケネンデ
simple:Jan Peter Balkenende
1956
1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January-April
- January 1 - End of Anglo-Egyptian Codominium in Sudan.
- January 16 - President Gamal Abdal Nasser of Egypt vows to reconquer Palestine.
- January 26 - 1956 Winter Olympic Games open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy.
- January 26 - The United Kingdom bans heroin.
- January 25-January 26 - Finnish troops reoccupy Porkkala after Soviet troops vacate its military base. Civilians can return February 4.
- February 6 - Paul Harvey arrested for trying to break into Argonne National Laboratory.
- February 15 - Urho Kekkonen is elected President of Finland.
- February 22 - Elvis Presley enters the music charts for the first time, with "Heartbreak Hotel."
- February 23 - Nikita Khrushchev attacks the veneration of Joseph Stalin as a "cult of personality."
- March 1 - the International Air Transport Association finalises a draft of the Radiotelephony spelling alphabet for the International Civil Aviation Organization.
- March 2 - Morocco declares its independence from France.
- March 9 - British deport Archbishop Makarios from Cyprusto Seychelles.
- March 12 - United Kingdom abolishes death penalty for murder
- March 15 - The Broadway musical My Fair Lady opens in New York City.
- March 20 - Tunisia gains independence from France.
- March 23 - Pakistan becomes the first Islamic republic.
- April 7 - Spain relinquishes its protectorate in Morocco.
- April 9 - Habib Bouirgiba is elected prime minister of Tunisia.
- April 19 - British diver Lionel Crabb dives into the Portsmouth harbor to investigate visiting Soviet cruiser and vanishes.
- April 19 - Actress Grace Kelly marries Prince Rainier III of Monaco.
May-June
- early May - The Methodist Church in America decides at its General Conference to grant women full ordained clergy status.
- May 8 - Austria and Israel form diplomatic relations.
- May 8 - Constitutional union between Indonesia and Netherlands is dissolved.
- May 9 - First ascent of Manaslu, eighth highest mountain in the world.
- May 18 - First ascent of Lhotse (main), fourth highest mountain.
- May 21 - Nuclear testing: In the Pacific Ocean, Bikini Atoll is nearly obliterated by the first airborne explosion of a hydrogen bomb.
- May 23 - French minister Pierre Mendes-France resigns due to government's policy on Algeria.
- June 1 - Vyacheslav Molotov resigns as a foreign minister of Soviet Union; he later becomes ambassador in Mongolia.
- June 6 - In Singapore, chief minister David Marshall resigns after breakdown of talks about internal self government in London.
- June 10 - 1956 Summer Olympics: Equestrian events open in Stockholm, Sweden.
- June 14 - President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorizes the phrase "under God" should be added to the Pledge of Allegiance
- June 18 - Last foreign troops leave Egypt.
- June 23 - Gamal Abdel Nasser becomes the second president of Egypt.
- June 28 - MP Sydney Silverman's bill for abolition of death penalty passes the British House of Commons.
- June 28 - Labour riots at Poznan, Poland, are crushed with heavy loss of life. Soviet troops fire at crowd that protests high prices - 53 dead.
- June 29 - Actress Marilyn Monroe marries the playwright Arthur Miller.
- June 30 - A TWA Lockheed Constellation and United Airlines Douglas DC-7 collide in mid-air over the Grand Canyon in Arizona and crash. All 128 people aboard the two aircraft are killed in the disaster. The accident prompts tighter air traffic control to be implemented in the United States.
July-August
- July 2 - Two passengers planes collide and fall into Grand Canyon - 127 dead
- July 8 - First ascent of Gasherbrum II.
- July 10 - British House of Lords defeats the abolition of death penalty.
- July 24 - At New York City's Copacabana Club, Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis perform their last comedy show together which started on July 25, 1946.
- July 25 - 45 miles south of Nantucket Island, the Italian ocean liner SS Andrea Doria sinks after colliding with the Swedish ship SS Stockholm in heavy fog, killing 51.
- July 26 - Egyptian leader Gamal Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal sparking international condemnation.
- July 30 - A Joint Resolution of the U.S. Congress is signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, authorizing "In God We Trust" as the U.S. national motto.
- July 31 - Jim Laker sets extraordinary record at Old Trafford in the fourth Test of taking nineteen wickets in a first class match (the previous best was seventeen).
- August 8 - Fire and explosion kills 263 miners at Marcinelle, Belgium.
- August 17 - West Germany bans communist party
September-October
- September 25 - Submarine telephone cable across the Atlantic opened
- October 10 - Finland joins UNESCO
- October 14 - Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Indian Untouchable leader, converts to Buddhism along with 385,000 followers. See Neo-Buddhism.
- October 15 - RAF retires its last Lancaster bomber
- October 15 - Fidel Castro and Che Guevara depart from Tuxpan, Mexico enroute to Santiago de Cuba aboard ship Granma with 82 men. After the ship passes a storm, it lands on Belici, Cuba, December 2
- October 23 - Hungarian revolution against the pro-Soviet government. Soviet Union intervenes. Hungary attempts to leave the Warsaw Pact.
- October 26 - Warsaw Pact troops invade Hungary.
- October 29 - Suez Crisis begins: Israel invades the Sinai Peninsula and push Egyptian forces back toward the Suez Canal.
- October 29 - Tangier Protocol signed: The international city Tangier is reintegrated into Morocco.
- October 31 - Suez Crisis: The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal.
November-December
- November 4 - 1956 Hungarian Revolution: Soviet troops invade Hungary to crush a revolt that started on October 23. Thousands are killed, more are wounded and nearly a quarter million leave the country.
- November 6 - U.S. presidential election, 1956: Republican incumbent Dwight D. Eisenhower is reelected by defeating Democrat challenger Adlai E. Stevenson in a rematch of their contest four years earlier.
- November 6 - Enoch A. Holtwick defeated as presidential candidate of Prohibition Party.
- November 7 - Suez Crisis: The United Nations General Assembly adopts a resolution calling for the United Kingdom, France and Israel to withdraw their troops from Egypt immediately.
- November 14 - Fighting ends in Hungary.
- November 16 - Suez canal blocked.
- November 20 - In Yugoslavia, former prime minister Milovan Sjilas is arrested after he critisized Josip Broz Tito
- November 22 - Beginning of the Summer Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia.
- November 23 - Suez Crisis causes petrol rationing in Britain.
- December 2 - Fidel Castro and his followers land on Cuba in the boat Granma.
- December 2 - A pipe bomb explodes at a movie theater in Brooklyn (work of George Metesky), injuring six people.
- December 5 - Rose Heilbron becomes Britain's first female judge
- December 12 - Japan becomes member of the United Nations.
- December 23 - British and French troops leave Suez Canal region
Unknown date
- Eindhoven University of Technology founded in Eindhoven, The Netherlands
- First hard disk (5MB) invented by IBM.
- Minamata disease discovered
Births
January-February
- January 3 - Mel Gibson, Australian actor and director
- January 4 - Bernard Sumner, British guitarist (Joy Division and New Order)
- January 5 - Chen Kenichi, Japanese chef
- January 7 - David Caruso, American actor
- January 10 - Shawn Colvin, American singer
- January 14 - Ben Heppner, Canadian tenor
- January 16 - Martin Jol, Dutch football manager
- January 17 - Paul Young, English musician
- January 20 - Bill Maher, American actor, comedian, and political analyst
- January 21 - Geena Davis, American actress
- January 27 - Mimi Rogers, American actress
- January 31 - Johnny Rotten, British singer (Sex Pistols)
- February 3 - Nathan Lane, American actor
- February 11 - Didier Lockwood, French jazz violinist
- February 13 - Peter Hook, British bassist (Joy Division and New Order)
- February 14 - Tom Burlinson, Australian actor
- February 14 - Ron Shore, American film and television composer and producer
- February 15 - Desmond Haynes, West Indian cricketer
- February 18 - Thomas Gradin, Swedish hockey player
- February 19 - Roderick MacKinnon, American biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- February 24 - Paula Zahn, American television journalist
- February 26 - Keisuke Kuwata, Japanese musician
- February 29 - Randy Jackson, American musician
- February 29 - Bob Speller, Canadian politician
- February 29 - Aileen Carol Wuornos, American serial killer (d. 2002)
March-April
- March 11 - Rob Paulsen, American voice actor
- March 21 - Ingrid Kristiansen, Norwegian runner
- April 3 - Ray Combs, American game show host and comedian
- April 4 - Kerry Chikarovski, Australian politician
- April 4 - David E. Kelley, American writer and television producer
- April 6 - Dilip Vengsarkar, Indian cricketer
- April 12 - Andy Garcia, American actor
- April 13 - Peter 'Possum' Bourne, Australian race car driver (d. 2003)
- April 13 - Alison Wheeler, British political activist
- April 14 - Barbara Bonney, American soprano
- April 16 - David M. Brown, United States Naval Captain, NASA astronaut (d. 2003)
- April 16 - Lise-Marie Morerod, Swiss skier
- April 19 - Sue Barker, British tennis player and television presenter
- April 23 - Judy Davis, Australian actress
- April 26 - Koo Stark, British actress
- April 28 - Jimmy Barnes, Australian musician
- April 30 - Jorge Chaminé, Portuguese baritone
- April 30 - Lars von Trier, Danish film director
May-June
- May 4 - David Guterson, American writer
- May 4 - Ulrike Meyfarth, German high jumper
- May 7 - Jan Peter Balkenende, Prime Minister of the Netherlands
- May 13 - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Indian guru
- May 13 - Steve Blackwood, American actor and musician
- May 15 - Dan Patrick, American sportscaster
- May 16 - Olga Korbut, Russian gymnast
- May 17 - Sugar Ray Leonard, American boxer
- May 17 - Bob Saget, American actor
- May 19 - James Gosling, Canadian software engineer
- May 20 - Ingvar Ambjørnsen, Norwegian author
- May 21 - Judge Reinhold, American actor
- May 23 - Buck Showalter, baseball player and manager
- June 6 - Björn Borg, Swedish tennis player
- June 9 - Patricia Cornwell, American novelist
- June 11 - Joe Montana, American football player
- June 23 - Glenn Danzig, American musician (Danzig)
- June 25 - Boris Trajkovski, President of the Republic of Macedonia (d. 2004)
- June 27 - Heiner Dopp, German field hockey player
- June 30 - Ronald Winans, American musician (d. 2005)
July-August
- July 2 - Jerry Hall, American model and actress
- July 9 - Tom Hanks, American actor
- July 14 - Ran Andrews, Canadian painter
- July 15 - Ian Curtis, British musician (Joy Division) (d. 1980)
- July 15 - Barry Melrose, Canadian hockey player, coach, and commentator
- July 15 - Marky Ramone American drummer (The Ramones)
- July 16 - Tony Kushner, American playwright
- July 31 - Michael Biehn, American actor
- August 5 - Maureen McCormick, American actress
- August 14 - Rusty Wallace, American race car driver
- August 20 - Joan Allen, American actress
- August 21 - Kim Cattrall, Canadian actress
- August 22 - Paul Molitor, baseball player
- August 23 - Andreas Floer, German mathematician (d. 1991)
- August 24 - John Culberson, American politician
- August 31 - Masashi Tashiro, Japanese television performer
September-December
- September 11 - Phil Bissett, American politican
- September 12 - Ricky Rudd, American race car driver
- September 14 - Costas Caramanlis, Greek politician
- September 14 - Ray Wilkins, English footballer and coach
- September 20 - Gary Cole, American actor
- September 22 - Masayuki Suzuki, Japanese singer (Rats & Star)
- September 26 - Linda Hamilton, American actress
- September 30 - Fran Drescher, American actress
- October 11 - Nicanor Duarte Frutos, President of Paraguay
- October 17 - Mae Jemison, astronaut
- October 18 - Martina Navratilova, Czech-born tennis player
- October 19 - Carlo Urbani, Italian physician (d. 2003)
- November 18 - Warren Moon, American football player
- November 23 - Shane Gould, Australian swimmer
- November 23 - Steve Harvey, American actor and comedian
- November 26 - Dale Jarrett, American race car driver
- November 27 - William Fichtner, American actor
- November 28 - Lucy Gutteridge, British actress
- November 28 - Andreas Augustin, Austrian author
- November 29 - Leo Laporte, Candian author and television host
- December 5 - Krystian Zimerman, Polish pianist
- December 5 - Brian Backer, American actor
- December 7 - Larry Bird, American basketball player
- December 7 - Mark Rolston, American actor
- December 8 - Warren Cuccurullo, American musician (Missing Persons and Duran Duran)
- December 12 - Johan Van der Velde, Dutch cyclist
- December 18 - Ron White, American comedian
- December 23 - Michele Alboreto, Italian race car driver
- December 23 - Dave Murray, British guitarist
- December 26 - David Sedaris, American essayist
- December 28 - Nigel Kennedy, English violinist
Deaths
January-April
- January 3 - Alexander Grechaninov, Russian composer (b. 1864)
- January 5 - Mistinguett, French singer (b. 1875)
- January 13 - Lyonel Charles Feininger, German painter (b. 1871)
- January 24 - Sir Alexander Korda, Hungarian-born film director (b. 1893)
- January 27 - Erich Kleiber, German conductor (b. 1890)
- January 29 - H. L. Mencken, American writer (b. 1880)
- January 31 - A. A. Milne, English author (b. 1882)
- February 8 - Connie Mack, baseball executive and manager (b. 1862)
- February 18 - Gustave Charpentier, French composer (b. 1860)
- March 17 - Irène Joliot-Curie, French physicist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (b. 1897)
- March 20 - Fanny Durack, Australian swimmer
- March 25 - Robert Newton, English film actor (b. 1905)
- March 30 - Edmund Clerihew Bentley, English inventor (b. 1875)
- March 31 - Ralph DePalma, Italian-born race car driver (b. 1884)
- April 30 - Alben Barkley, Vice-President of the United States (b. 1877)
May-December
- May 12 - Louis Calhern, American actor (b. 1895)
- May 17 - Austin Osman Spare, English magician (b. 1886)
- May 18 - Maurice Tate, English cricketer (b. 1895)
- May 20 - Max Beerbohm, English theater critic (b. 1872)
- May 26 - Al Simmons, baseball player (b. 1902)
- May 31 - Diedrich Hermann Westermann, German linguist (b. 1875)
- June 17 - Paul Rostock, German official, surgeon, and university professor (b. 1892)
- June 23 - Reinhold Glière, Russian composer (b. 1875)
- July 7 - Gottfried Benn, German poet (b. 1886)
- August 2 - Albert Woolson, last surviving Union veteran of the American Civil War (b. 1847)
- August 11 - Jackson Pollock, American painter (b. 1912)
- August 14 - Bertolt Brecht, German playwright (b. 1898)
- August 16 - Bela Lugosi, Hungarian-born film actor (b. 1882)
- August 23 - Peaches Browning, American actress (b. 1910)
- August 25 - Alfred Kinsey, American sex researcher (b. 1894)
- September 21 - Anastasio Somoza García, President of Nicaragua (b. 1896)
- September 22 - Frederick Soddy, English chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1877)
- September 27 - Babe Didrikson Zaharias, American athlete and golfer (b. 1911)
- October 12 - Don Lorenzo Perosi, Italian composer (b. 1872)
- October 19 - Isham Jones, American musician (b. 1894)
- October 26 - Walter Gieseking, French conductor (b. 1895)
- November 24 - Guido Cantelli, Italian conductor (b. 1920)
- December 6 - Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Indian untouchable leader (b. 1891)
- December 7 - Huntley Gordon, Canadian actor (b. 1887)
- December 16 - Nina Hamnett, Welsh artist (b 1890)
Unknown dates
- James Alexander Allan, Australian poet (b. 1889)
Nobel Prizes
- Physics - William Bradford Shockley, John Bardeen, Walter Houser Brattain
- Chemistry - Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood, Nikolay Nikolaevich Semenov
- Physiology or Medicine - André Frédéric Cournand, Werner Forssmann, Dickinson W. Richards
- Literature - Juan Ramón Jiménez
- Peace - not awarded
Category:1956
ko:1956년
ms:1956
ja:1956年
simple:1956
th:พ.ศ. 2499
2002
2002 (MMII) is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. It was designated the:
- International Year of Ecotourism and Mountains
- Year of the Outback in Australia
- National Science Year in the United Kingdom
- Autism Awareness Year in the United Kingdom
See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Overview of the year
In contrast to 2000 and 2001, which retained elements of the late 1990s, 2002 shifted into a new cultural decade. With the declining popularity of late 1990s and early 2000s acts like 'N Sync and The Backstreet Boys after band break-ups, rap acts like 50 Cent and Eminem rose in popularity. Pop-Punk acts like Good Charlotte and New Found Glory also appealed to adolescents. 2002 also marked the begining of the controversial Iraq War, which many say, along with 9/11, was the true generation definer of the 2000s.
Events
- January 1 - The Republic of China officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Chinese Taipei.
- January 1 - The Open Skies mutual surveillance treaty, initially signed in 1992, officially enters in to force.
- January 5 - Charles Bishop, a 15 year-old student pilot, crashes a light aircraft into a Tampa, Florida building, evoking fear of a copycat 9/11 terrorist attack.
- January 9 - The United States Department of Justice announces it is going to pursue a criminal investigation of Enron.
- January 10 - Enrique Bolaños began his five-year term as President of the Republic of Nicaragua.
- January 13 - President George W. Bush faints after choking on a pretzel.
- January 14 - The case of Adelaide Abankwah comes into trial in New York
- January 16 - A student shoots 6 people at the Appalachian School of Law, killing three.
- January 16 - John Ashcroft announces that American Taliban member John Walker Lindh would be tried in the United States.
- January 16 - The UN Security Council unanimously establishes an arms embargo and the freezing of assets of Osama bin Laden, Al-Qaida, and the Taliban.
- January 17 - Eruption of Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, displacing an estimated 400,000 people.
- January 18 - A Canadian Pacific Railway train carrying anhydrous ammonia derails outside of Minot, North Dakota, killing one.
- January 22 - AOL Time Warner brings a federal suit against Microsoft seeking damages. The suit alleges that the market for AOL's Netscape Navigator Internet browser was harmed when Microsoft started to give away a competing browser.
- January 22 - Kmart Corp becomes the largest retailer in American history to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
- January 22 - Clyde Hood sentenced for 14 years in prison for Omega Trust fraud
- January 24 - Terrorist suspect John Walker Lindh's hearing begins.
- January 27 - Several explosions at a military dump in Lagos, Nigeria kill more than 1,000.
- February 2 - Crown Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands marries Máxima, Princess of Orange in Amsterdam.
- February 3 - Costa Rica: elections for President and Congress
- February 8-February 24 - 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah
- February 12 - The trial of former President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milošević begins at the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague
- February 12 - Nuclear waste: US Secretary of Energy makes the decision that Yucca Mountain is suitable to be the United States' nuclear repository.
- February 13 - Queen Elizabeth II gives former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani an honorary knighthood.
- February 16 - Rachel Thaler, aged 16, blown up at a pizzena in an Israeli shopping mall following a suicide bombing attack on a crowd of teenagers.
- February 19 - NASA's Mars Odyssey space probe begins to map the surface of using its thermal emission imaging system.
- February 20 - In Reqa Al-Gharbiya, Egypt, a fire on a train injures over 65 and kills at least 370
- February 20 - In most of the world, at 20:02 (8:02 PM) local time, date (written as day/month), time, and year are all 2002, making each of them alone, any two together, and the combination of all three, all palindromes.
- February 22 - Norwegian-facilitated ceasefire begins in Sri Lanka
- February 23 - FARC kidnaps Ingrid Betancourt in Colombia when she campaigns for presidency
- February 27 - Ethnic conflict in India: 59 Hindu pilgrims die aboard a train burned by a Muslim mob in Godhra, India, sparking a series of riots, leaving hundreds dead
- February 28 - The ex-currencies of all euro members officialy (at EU-level) cease to be legal tender.
- March 1 - U.S. invasion of Afghanistan: In eastern Afghanistan, Operation Anaconda begins.
- March 1 - 28 people die in continuing violence in Ahmedabad. Police shoot and kill five while attempting to control rioters.
- March 1 - The Envisat environmental satellite successfully reaches an orbit 800km above the Earth on its 11th launch, carrying the heaviest payload to date at 8500kg.
- March 1 - Space Shuttle Columbia flies Hubble Space Telescope service mission (STS-109).
- March 1 - Peseta discontinued as official currency of Spain and is replaced with the euro (€)
- March 3 - São Tomé and Príncipe: elections for the legislature
- March 6 - France agrees to return the remains of Saartje Baartman to South Africa
- March 10 - Colombia: elections for the legislature; Togo: elections for the Parliament
- March 11 - BBC 6 Music, the first new BBC music radio station in decades, is launched
- March 12 - In Texas, Andrea Yates is found guilty of drowning her five children on June 20, 2001. She is later sentenced to life in prison
- March 17 - Portugal: elections for the Parliament
- March 19 - US Attack on Afghanistan: Operation Anaconda ends (started on March 1) after killing 500 Taliban and al Qaeda fighters with 11 allied troop fatalities
- March 21 - In Pakistan, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh along with three other suspects are charged with murder for their part in the kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl
- March 27 - Netanya suicide attack: A suicide bomber kills 28 people in Netanya, Israel
- March 31 - Ukraine: elections for the Parliament
April
- April 2 - Israeli forces surround the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, when militants take shelter there. A siege ensues.
- April 9- Funeral of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother takes place in Westminster Abbey, London.
- April 15 - An Air China Boeing 767-200 crashes into a hillside during heavy rain and fog near Pusan, South Korea, killing 128
- April 15 - The Alameda Corridor transportation project in Los Angeles, California opens to rail traffic, ceasing operations of through freight trains on the 120-year-old BNSF Harbor Subdivision.
- April 17 - Four Canadian infantrymen are killed in Afghanistan by friendly fire from two U.S. F-16s.
- April 18 - New order of insects, Mantophasmatodea, announced.
- April 25 - South African Mark Shuttleworth blasts off from the Baikonur cosmodrome; he had paid £15 million for the trip.
- April 26 - Robert Steinhauser opens fire on his former teachers and other students in Erfurt, Germany and then kills himself: 16 dead.
- April 27 - Three people killed in Laughlin, Nevada River Run Riot.
- April 30 - Pakistan: Pakistani voters approve a referendum granting a five-year term for Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf.
May]
- May 4 - In Germany, BV Borussia Dortmund wins the Bundesliga title after a 2-1 victory over SV Werder Bremen.
- May 6 - In the Netherlands, politician Pim Fortuyn is killed by Volkert van der Graaf.
- May 7 - Gay Canadian teenager Marc Hall is granted a court injunction ordering that he be allowed to attend his high school prom with his boyfriend.
- May 9 - The 38-day stand-off in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem comes to an end when the Palestinians inside agreed to have 13 suspected militants among them deported to several different countries. The standoff started April 2.
- May 9 - In Kaspiysk, Russia, a remote-control bomb explodes during a holiday parade, killing 43 and injuring at least 130.
- May 10 - FBI agent Robert Hanssen is sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for selling American secrets to Moscow for $1.4 million in cash and diamonds.
- May 12 - Former President Jimmy Carter arrives in Cuba for a five-day visit with Fidel Castro becoming the first President of the United States, in or out of office, to visit the island since Castro's 1959 revolution.
- May 15 - The Netherlands: elections for the Lower House.
- May 16 - Star Wars: Attack of the Clones is released in theaters.
- May 20 - Restoration of East Timor independence
- May 21 - US State Department releases report citing seven State-Sponsors of Terrorism;Iran,Iraq,Cuba,Libya,North Korea,Sudan,andSyria.
- May 22 - In Washington, DC, Chandra Levy's remains are found in Rock Creek Park.
- May 22 - American civil rights movement: 16th Street Baptist Church bombing: A jury in Birmingham, Alabama convicts former Ku Klux Klan member Bobby Frank Cherry of the 1963 murders of four girls.
- May 23 - Irish Football Captain, Roy Keane, Is sent home from the Training Camp in Saipan, by Manager Mick McCarthy after an Argument over Training arrangements. This cause a huge Media sensation in Ireland and Britain. Many people were split over two sides and some called it the Second Irish Civil War.
- May 23 - First Eurovision Song Contest in a former Soviet country: Estonia
- May 25 - The Boston Celtics come back from twenty-six points down to defeat the New Jersey Nets in Game 3 of the National Basketball Association's Eastern Conference Finals.
- May 25 - China Airlines Flight 611 broke up near the Penghu Islands at Taiwan Strait, killing all 225 people on board.
- May 26 - The Mars Odyssey finds signs of huge water ice deposits on the planet Mars.
- May 28 - Washington DC's medical examiner declares that Chandra Levy's death was the result of homicide.
- May 31 through June 30 - 17th Football World Cup in South Korea and Japan
June over London in a fly past for Queen Elizabeth II on her Golden Jubilee]]
- June 1 - The Los Angeles Lakers def the Sacramento Kings 112-106, to win Game 7 of the National Basketball Association's 2002 Western Conference Finals.
- June 3 - The "Party in the Palace" takes place at Buckingham Palace, London for Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee celebrations.
- June 4 - Quaoar is discovered.
- June 4 - Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh ride in the gold state coach from Buckingham Palace to St Paul's Cathedral for a special service marking the Queen's 50 years on the throne. In New York, the Empire State Building is lit in purple for her honour.
- June 5 - Elizabeth Smart is kidnapped from her Salt Lake City, Utah home.
- June 5 - Mozilla 1.0, the first 'official' version, is released.
- June 6 - The United States House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee announces it is probing Martha Stewart's ImClone stock sales.
- June 8 - Serena Williams defeats her sister Venus Williams in straight sets to win the 2002 French Open.
- June 10 - Annular solar eclipse.
- June 11 - Antonio Meucci was recognised as the first inventor of the telephone by the United States Congress.
- June 12 - The Los Angeles Lakers def the New Jersey Nets 4 games to 0 to win the 2002 NBA Finals.
- June 13 - The Detroit Red Wings def the Carolina Hurricanes 4 games to 1 in the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals.
- June 14 - In Karachi, Pakistan, a car bomb in front of the U.S. consulate kills twelve Pakistanis and injures fifty.
- June 18 - Arizona experiences its worst forest fire, burning 462,606 acres (1,872 km²) near the Mogollon Rim.
- June 30 - Brazil defeats Germany 2-0 to win the Football World Cup 2002.
- July 1 - Russian passenger jet and a cargo plane collide over the town of Uberlingen in Southern Germany - 72 dead
- July 1 - Wendy J. Hamilton became president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
- July 5 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq once again rejects new U.N. weapons inspections proposals
- July 10 - At a Sotheby's auction, Peter Paul Rubens' painting "The Massacre of the Innocents" is sold for £49.5million (US$76.2 million) to Lord Thomson
- July 13 - A lighting strike sets off the Sour Biscuit Fire in Oregon and northern California, which is left to burn 499,570 acres (2,022 km²) when finally contained on September 5.
- July 14 - During Bastille Day celebrations, Jacques Chirac escapes an assassination attempt unscathed.
- July 15 - So-called "American Taliban" John Walker Lindh pleads guilty to supplying aid to the enemy and for the possession of explosives during the commission of a felony. Lindh agrees to serve 10 years in prison for each of the charges
- July 19 - K-19: The Widowmaker starring Harrison Ford is released.
- July 21 - Telecommunications giant WorldCom files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the largest such filing in United States history
- July 27 - Helen Clark leader of the Labour Party is historically re-elected in a landslide victory over the Right Wing in the New Zealand general election of 2002.
- July 27 - A Sukhoi Su-27 fighter crashes at an air show in Ukraine killing 78 and injuring more than 100 others, the largest air show disaster in history.
- August 27 - Simon & Schuster sues Michael Pelligrino and Artist Management Group because Pelligrino had written a book claiming to be a son of late Mafioso Carlo Gambino
- September 2 - The opening of the United Nations World Summit on Sustainable Development, successor of the 1972 Conference on the Human Environment, 1983 World Commission on Environment and Development, and the 1992 Conference on Environment and Development.
- September 3 - Consolidated Freightways files for bankruptcy
- September 5 - A car bomb kills at least 30 people in Afghanistan, and an apparent assassination attempt on Afghan President Hamid Karzai fails the same day.
- September 5 - The Sour Biscuit Fire in Oregon and northern California, which burned 499,570 acres (2,022 km²), is finally contained.
- September 8 - Typhoon Sinlaku causes huge waves on the Qiantangjiang River in Sheijang Province, China
- September 11 - The World Summit on Sustainable Development comes to a close.
- September 12 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. President George W. Bush, addresses the U.N. and challenges its members to confront the "grave and gathering danger" of Iraq or stand aside as the United States and likeminded nations act.
- September 15 - The Swedish parliamentary election leaves Prime Minister Göran Persson and the Social Democrats in power.
- September 22 - The German federal election leaves Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, his Social Democrats and the Greens in power
- October 2 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The U.S. Congress passes a joint resolution which explicitly authorizes the President to use the Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be necessary and appropriate.
- October 7 - Discovery of Quaoar is announced.
- October 11 - Lone bomber explodes a home-made bomb in the Myyrmanni shopping mall north of Helsinki, Finland - casualties include himself. See Myyrmanni bombing.
- October 12 - Bali bombing: Terrorists detonate massive bombs in two nightclubs in Kuta, Bali, killing 202 and injuring over 300.
- October 16 - Iraq disarmament crisis: George W. Bush signs the Iraq war resolution.
- October 24 - The Beltway snipers are arrested.
- October 25 - U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone, his family and staff, are killed by a plane accident at Eveleth, Minnesota.
- October 27 - The Anaheim Angels defeat the San Francisco Giants in Game 7 of the 2002 World Series.
November.
- November 5 - U.S. Elections: The Republican Party maintains control of the House of Representatives and regains control of the Senate.
- November 7 - Iran bans advertising of US products.
- November 8 - Iraq disarmament crisis: UN Security Council Resolution 1441 – The United Nations Security Council unanimously approves a resolution on Iraq, forcing Saddam Hussein to disarm or face "serious consequences".
- November 9 - In Los Angeles, California, television and film actor Merlin Santana is shot to death while sitting in the passenger seat of a friend's car parked on the 3800 block of Victoria Avenue.
- November 13 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraq agrees to the terms of the UN Security Council Resolution 1441.
- November 13 - The oil tanker Prestige sinks off the Galician coast and causes a huge oil spill.
- November 14 - Argentina defaults on a US$805 million World Bank payment
- November 15 - Hu Jintao becomes general secretary of the Communist Party of China.
- November 16 - A Campaign Against Climate Change march takes place in London from Lincoln's Inn Fields, past Esso offices to the United States Embassy.
- November 18 - Iraq disarmament crisis: United Nations weapons inspectors led by Hans Blix arrive in Iraq.
- November 21 - NATO Summit in Prague - Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia invited to become NATO members.
- November 22 - In Nigeria, more than 100 people are killed at an attack aimed at the contestants of the Miss World contest.
- November 25 - US President George W. Bush signs the Homeland Security Act into law, establishing the Department of Homeland Security in the largest US government reorganization since the creation of the Department of Defense in 1947 (the Senate passed the bill 90-9 on November 19).
- December 4 - Total solar eclipse
- December 7 - Iraq disarmament crisis: As required by the recently passed U.N. resolution, Iraq files a 12,000 page weapons declaration with the U.N. Security Council. Although it is supposed to be a complete declaration, it is seen as incomplete by the Security Council and weapons inspectors.
- December 10 - High Court of Australia hands down its judgement in the Internet defamation dispute in the case of Gutnick v Dow Jones.
- December 18 - Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers was released into theaters.
- December 24 - Laci Peterson of Modesto, California is reported missing.
- December 27 - Suicide truck-bomb attack destroys headquarters of Chechnya's Moscow-backed government, killing 72 people.
- December 29 – Communist New People's Army blows up a bust of Ferdinand Marcos in Benguet, Philippines.
Unknown Date
- Naruto (anime) is created by Studio Perriot.
- American Prohibition Foundation incorported.
Births
- August 2 - Kara Hoffman, American actress
- August 2 - Shelby Hoffman, American actress
- December 6 - Sophia Rosalinda Bratt, daughter of Benjamin Bratt and Talisa Soto
Deaths
For more deaths see: Deaths in 2002
January
- January 3 - Freddy Heineken, Dutch-born beer magnate (b. 1923)
- January 8 - Alexander Prochorow, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
- January 8 - Dave Thomas, American fast food entrepreneur (b. 1932)
- January 12 - Stanley Unwin, South African comedian (b. 1911)
- January 12 - Cyrus Vance, United States Secretary of State (b. 1917)
- January 13 - Ted Demme, American film and television director (b. 1963)
- January 16 - Michael Bilandic, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1923)
- January 16 - Bobo Olson, American boxer (b. 1928)
- January 16 - Ron Taylor, American actor (b. 1952)
- January 17 - Camilo José Cela, Spanish writer (b. 1916)
- January 22 - Peggy Lee, American singer and actress (b. 1920)
- January 23 - Pierre Bourdieu, French sociologist (b. 1930)
- January 23 - Robert Nozick, American philosopher (b. 1938)
- January 28 - Dick "Night Train" Lane, American football player (b. 1928)
- January 28 - Astrid Lindgren, Swedish children's book author (b. 1907)
- January 29 - Harold Russell, Canadian-born actor (b. 1914)
February
- February 6 - Max Perutz, Austrian-born molecular biologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (b. 1914)
- February 8 - Joachim Hoffmann, German historian (b. 1930)
- February 9 - Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom (b. 1930)
- February 14 - Nándor Hidegkuti, Hungarian footballer (b. 1922)
- February 15 - Howard K. Smith, American television journalist (b. 1914)
- February 15 - Kevin Smith, New Zealand actor (b. 1963)
- February 16 - Walter Winterbottom, English football manager (b. 1913)
- February 19 - Virginia Hamilton, American writer
- February 21 - John Thaw, British actor (b. 1942)
- February 22 - Chuck Jones, American animator (b. 1912)
- February 22 - Jonas Savimbi, Angolan rebel leader (b. 1934)
- February 24 - Leo Ornstein, American composer and pianist (b. 1912)
- February 26 - Lawrence Tierney, American actor (b. 1919)
- February 27 - Spike Milligan, British comedian, writer, and poet (b. 1918)
- February 27 - Mary Stuart, American actress (b. 1926)
- February 28 - Helmut Zacharias, German violinist (b. 1920)
March
- March 11 - James Tobin, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1918)
- March 14 - Cherry Wilder, New Zealand author (b. 1930)
- March 24 - César Milstein, Argentine scientist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1927)
- March 25 - Kenneth Wolstenholme, British football commentator (b. 1920)
- March 27 - Milton Berle, American comedian and actor (b. 1908)
- March 27 - Dudley Moore, British pianist, comedian, and actor (b. 1935)
- March 27 - Billy Wilder, Austrian-born film screenwriter and director (b. 1906)
- March 30 - Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, queen of George VI of the United Kingdom (b. 1900)
- March 31 - Barry Took, British comedian and writer (b. 1928)
April
- April 5 - Layne Staley, American singer (Alice in Chains) (b. 1967)
- April 8 - Maria Felix, Mexican actress (b. 1914)
- April 9 - Leopold Vietoris, Austrian mathematician (b. 1891)
- April 15 - Byron White, American athlete and Supreme Court Justice (b. 1917)
- April 16 - Franz Krienbühl, Swiss speed skater (b. 1929)
- April 16 - Robert Urich, American actor (cancer) (b. 1946)
- April 18 - Thor Heyerdahl, Norwegian explorer (b. 1914)
- April 18 - Wahoo McDaniel, American football player and wrestler (b. 1938)
- April 25 - Indra Devi, yoga teacher (b. 1899)
- April 25 - Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, American rapper (TLC) (b. 1971)
- April 27 - George Alec Effinger, American author (b. 1947)
- April 27 - Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza, Swiss industrialist and art collector (b. 1921)
- April 28 - Ruth Handler, American toy manufacturer (b. 1916)
- April 28 - Alexander Lebed, Russian general and politician (b. 1950)
May
- May 5 - Hugo Bánzer Suarez, President of Bolivia (b. 1926)
- May 6 - Pim Fortuyn, Dutch politician (assassi
List of Prime Ministers of the Netherlands
- 3 November 1877: Jan Kappeyne van de Coppello (liberal)
- 19 August 1879: Theo graaf van Lynden van Sandenburg (conservative-protestant)
- 22 April 1883: Jan Heemskerk Abrahamzoon (conservative)
- 20 April 1888: Aeneas baron Mackay (ARP)
- 21 August 1891: Gijsbert van Tienhoven (liberal)
- 8 May 1894: Joan Röell (old liberal)
- 26 July 1897: Nicolaas Gerard Pierson (Liberal Union)
- 31 July 1901: Abraham Kuyper ( | | |
