istoryworld
All Events
Nelson Mandela is sworn in as the first president of the new democratic South Africa
Brazilian driver Ayrton Senna dies when the steering column of his car shears during the San Marino Grand Prix
Hastings Banda, president since independence in 1964, is defeated in Malawi's first multiparty elections
Israel recognizes the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) as the representative body of the Palestinian people
The New Zealand government pays compensation to the Waikato tribe in the first of several settlements for land illegally seized
France's President Mitterrand and the British queen Elizabeth II together open the tunnel under the English Channel
The Italian film Il Postino brings poetry into the life of a postman who delivers mail to the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda
In his apostolic letter Ordinatio sacerdotalis John Paul II forbids even any discussion of the ordination of women
Mogadishu, the capital, is divided between two factions in Somalia's civil war
With apartheid ended, South Africa rejoins the Commonwealth of Nations
Trinidadian cricketer Brian Lara sets a new world record, scoring 501 not out when playing for Warwickshire against Durham
Italian architect Renzo Piano completes Kansai airport, on an artificial island in Osaka bay
President Clinton's bill to provide health insurance for all US citizens is defeated in Congress
Louis de Bernières publishes Captain Corelli's Mandolin, a love story set in Italian-occupied Cephalonia
After the genocide in Rwanda, the Rwandan Patriotic Front captures Kigali and replaces the Hutu government
Tony Blair wins the leadership of the Labour party, and sets about establishing what he calls New Labour
North Korean dictator Kim Il Sung dies and is succeeded by his son, Kim Jong Il
The IRA declares a cease-fire in Northern Ireland, a gesture followed a month later by Protestant paramilitaries
The return of Jean-Bertrand Aristide to Haiti, under UN protection, leads to a period of relative calm unusual in the republic
The fossilized skeleton of an Ardipithecus female, nicknamed Ardi and 4.4 million years old, is found in the Awash valley region of Ethiopia
Quentin Tarantino directs John Travolta and Bruce Willis in Pulp Fiction
Two leading members of Mexico's ruling party, Luis Donaldo Colosio and José Francisco Ruiz Massieu, are assassinated
Divorce is legalized in the republic of Ireland
Mike Newell directs the film Four Weddings and a Funeral, starring Hugh Grant
Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin share the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to solve the Israel-Palestine problem
