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1990s
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The 1990s collectively refers to the years between and including 1990 and 1999. During this time, the widespread adoption of personal computers, the Internet and the increased economic productivity led to the equity market booms around the world, and caused an influx of wealth to America, Europe and Asia.
This decade started with the United Nations' invasion of Iraq, as well as the cementation of free-market capitalism as the dominant economic system worldwide. During this decade, racial prejudice lost moral acceptance, and the gender roles for women began to increase dramatically in many industrialized countries. The majority of the decade was wedged between the Cold War and the War On Terror, creating a relative time of peace in the Western World.
World-changing eventsSignificant events that occurred during or after 1990 which would influence the course of history and character of the decade, include:
Significant events that marked the passing of the decade include:
International issuesPolitically, the 1990s was an era of spreading democracy.
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The 1990s collectively refers to the years between and including 1990 and 1999. During this time, the widespread adoption of personal computers, the Internet and the increased economic productivity led to the equity market booms around the world, and caused an influx of wealth to America, Europe and Asia.
This decade started with the United Nations' invasion of Iraq, as well as the cementation of free-market capitalism as the dominant economic system worldwide. During this decade, racial prejudice lost moral acceptance, and the gender roles for women began to increase dramatically in many industrialized countries. The majority of the decade was wedged between the Cold War and the War On Terror, creating a relative time of peace in the Western World.
World-changing eventsSignificant events that occurred during or after 1990 which would influence the course of history and character of the decade, include:
Significant events that marked the passing of the decade include:
- The resignation of President Boris Yeltsin on December 31, 1999 resulting in Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's succession to the position
- World-wide New Year's Eve celebrations on December 31 1999.
- Worldwide concern about possible widespread computer malfunctions resulting from the Year 2000 problem.
International issuesPolitically, the 1990s was an era of spreading democracy. The former countries of the Warsaw Pact moved from totalitarian regimes to democratically-elected governments. The same happened in other non-communist countries, such as Taiwan, Chile, South Africa, and Indonesia. Capitalism made great changes to the economies of communist countries like China and Vietnam, and even Cuba.
The improvement in relations between the countries of NATO and the former members of the Warsaw Pact ended the Cold War both in Europe and other parts of the world. In 1993, the Prime Minister of Israel, Yitzhak Rabin, and Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat shook hands in agreement for peace, at the conclusion of peace talks sponsored by US president Bill Clinton. The outcome of these talks, known as the Oslo Accords, was an agreement by Israel to allow Palestinian self-government.
Conflicts like the Balkan Wars, the Rwandan genocide, the Battle of Mogadishu in Somalia and the first Gulf War, as well as the continuation of terrorism, led some to hypothesize a Clash of Civilizations, but the decade was also a time of peace in terror-ridden Northern Ireland when the IRA agreed to a truce in 1994. This marked the beginning of the end of 25 years of violence between the two sectarian groups, Protestant and Catholic, and the start of political negotiations.
In Africa
In Asia- In Japan, after three decades of economic growth put them in second place in the world's economies, the situation worsened after 1993. The recession went on into the early 2000s, bringing an end to the seemingly unlimited prosperity that the country had hitherto enjoyed. However, the rise of free market economics in China under more socialist regulation had not slowed that country's economic prosperity in the 1990s, and its economic growth continues.
- Less affluent nations such as India, Malaysia and Vietnam also saw tremendous improvements in economic prosperity and quality of life during the 1990s. Optimism and hopes were high following the collapse of Communism, and restructuring following the end of the Cold War was beginning. However, there was also the continuation of terrorism in Third World regions that were once the "frontlines" for American and Soviet foreign politics, particularly in Asia.
- South-East Asia economic crisis starting from 1997.
- The Spratly islands issue became one of the most controversial in Southeast Asia.
- The Tibetan Freedom Concert brings 120,000 people together in the interest of increased human rights and autonomy for Tibet from China.
- Portugal hands sovereignty of Macau to the People's Republic of China on December 20, 1999.
- East Timor breaks away from Indonesian control in 1999, merely a year after the fall of Soeharto from power, ending a twenty-four year guerrilla war with more than 200,000 casualties. The UN deploys a peace keeping force, spearheaded by the Australian and New Zealand armed forces. America deploys US police officers to serve with the International Police element, to help train and equip an East Timorese police force.
- Great Britain hands sovereignty of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China on July 1, 1997.
- In May 1999, Pakistan sends troops covertly to occupy strategic peaks in Kashmir. A month later the Kargil War with India results in a political fiasco for Nawaz Sharif, followed by a military withdrawal to the Line of Control. The incident leads to a military coup in October in which the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is ousted by Army Chief Pervez Musharraf.
In Canada- Quebec, in a rekindled wave of separatism by French-Canadian activists, almost seceded from the dominion in a provincial referendum on October 30, 1995.
In Europe
Behind the former Iron Curtain
In the United Kingdom- The United Kingdom, after a recession in 1991 – 92 following the boom of the 80s and its withdrawal from the European Exchange Rate Mechanism on Black Wednesday, experienced sustained economic growth that stretched into the new millennium.
- In the UK in 1994, Tony Blair becomes leader of the British Labour Party and begins the "New Labour" project moving the party to the centre of British politics, which in 1997 ends 18 years of government by the Conservative party in a landslide election victory.
- Peace process begins in Northern Ireland in 1995.
In Latin America- Due to the Peruvian internal conflict and the economic crisis, Alberto Fujimori rises to power in Peru and remains in office for eleven years. His administration is marked by economic development but also by numerous human rights violations, a rampant corruption network set up by Vladimiro Montesinos.
In the Middle East
In the United StatesIn the United States, Bill Clinton was president for much of the decade. Under Clinton, the United States was involved in few foreign wars and saw a resurgence of liberal movements. However, the end of the Cold War dramatically changed the political landscape of the world as the long-standing "Communism vs. Capitalism" conflict essentially came to an end. One result of this was the establishment of political allegiances between many developing countries, and concurrent changes within their own governments. Great strides were made towards Israeli-Palestinian peace in the early part of the decade, due to official PLO recognition of Israel in 1993. However, later in the decade, the peace process became derailed and eventually the conflict escalated once again, especially in the 2000s. Al Qaeda became visible as a terrorist threat against the U.S. after the bombing of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998.
Significant events- The Waco massacre prompted a nationwide debate in the U.S. about the freedom of association right of the Michigan Militia, Montana Militia and other radical groups.
- The Oklahoma City Bombing, the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, killed 168. Bombing suspect Timothy McVeigh claimed he bombed the building in retaliation for the 1993 Waco massacre.
- In France, Princess Diana dies in a car accident in 1997. Debates of accident vs. assassination rage well into the 2000s.
- The European Union forms in 1992 under the Maastricht Treaty.
- Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was elected President of South Africa in 1994, becoming the first black-President in South African history.
- The 1992 Los Angeles riots occurred, with 53 deaths and 5,500 property fires in a 100-square mile riot zone. The riots were a result of the state court acquittal of three White and one Hispanic L.A. police officers by a predominately white jury in a police brutality case involving motorist Rodney King, but in 1993, all four officers were convicted in a federal civil rights case.
- The Omagh bombing in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland which kills 29 civilians and injures hundreds more.
- O.J. Simpson's trial, described in the media as the "trial of the century", but on October 3, 1995, Simpson was found "not guilty" of double-murder of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman. In the 1997 civil case, Simpson was held responsible and had to pay financial damages to the victims' families.
- The Channel Tunnel across the English Channel opens in 1994, connecting France and England. As of 2007 it is the second-longest rail tunnel in the world, but with the undersea section of 37.9 km (23.55 miles) being the longest undersea tunnel in the world.
- 1994 midterm election: The Republican Party took control of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate for the first time in 40 years. House Speaker Newt Gingrich assumes the role of antagonist to the Clinton Administration.
- US president Bill Clinton was caught in a media-frenzied sex scandal over his intern Monica Lewinsky, first announced on January 21, 1998. After the U.S. House of Representatives impeached Clinton on December 19, 1998 for perjury under oath, following an investigation by federal prosecutor Kenneth Starr, the Senate acquitted Clinton of the charges on February 12, 1999 and he finished his second term.
- The Columbine school shooting occurred on April 20, 1999, at Littleton, Colorado when two student gunmen took the Columbine high school hostage and killed 12 students, a teacher and the two committed suicide, making it the deadliest high school shooting in United States history at the time.
- The Anita Hill vs. Clarence Thomas federal case of October 10 – October 12, 1991, involved claims by Hill that Thomas committed sexual harassment against her. Thomas was not charged, but Hill became a national celebrity and a martyr to women's rights, triggering awareness on the issue of workplace sexual harassment. Thomas went on to become an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
- In the United Kingdom, the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep was confirmed by the Roslin Institute, and was reported by global media on February 26, 1997. Dolly would trigger a raging controversy on cloning and bioethical concerns regarding possible human cloning continue to this day.
- Y2K spread fear throughout the United States and eventually the world in the last half of the decade particularly 1999. Many feared that it would cause the world to end on new years day on January 1, 2000 due to a massive computer crash. It became huge in popular culture and many people stocked up on supplies for fear of a disaster. One year later, January 1, 2001 was the beginning of the 3rd millennium, as well the 21st century and the official end of the 20th century.
- A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit the Philippines on July 16, 1990 and killed around 1000 people in Baguio City.
Other significant events
- Gun politics in the US over the 1993 Brady Bill had banned or regulated most kinds of automatic weapons and semi-automatic weapons. The law called for a 5-day waiting period for potential gun-owners to be checked for past crimes before they can purchase a firearm.
- You go, girl! becomes a popular phrase in the media as feminism is more widely accepted and publicized with The Spice Girls, the WNBA, women's boxing, girl power, Sex and the City and others showcasing modern femininity and challenged the problem of sexism.
- With help from clinical fertility drugs, an Iowa mother, Bobbie McCaughey, gave birth to the first surviving septuplets in 1997. There followed a media frenzy and widespread support for the family.
- In August 1995, NASA scientists announced, then debunked a big "discovery" of "martian" microscopic life on an asteroid originated from Mars, found in Antarctica and examined to only find mineral formation, not alien bacteria.
- Kenny Everett dies shortly after confirming that he has AIDS.
- Freddie Mercury, Kurt Cobain, Tupac Shakur, and Notorious B.I.G. are the most publicized music-related deaths of the decade, in 1991, 1994, 1996, and 1997 respectively.
- Divorce and scandal rocked the British Royal House of Windsor.
- The murder of Selena Quintanilla, Tejano superstar from Texas.
- Sex and violence in the media increase, especially in the late part of the decade. Profanity in music reaches peak in the late1990s.
- Models Pamela Anderson, Sylvia Saint and Anna Nicole Smith become major sex symbols during the 1990s.
- Cindy Crawford becomes the most successful supermodel of the decade.
- Diana, Princess of Wales dies after a car crash in the Pont d'Alma road tunnel in Paris.
- The movie Titanic becomes a cultural phenomenon throughout the world and eventually becomes the biggest grossing movie of all time making almost 2 billion dollars world wide in a span of little over a year.
- Major League baseball players went on strike in August 12, 1994, thus ended the season, canceled the World Series the first time in 90 years, and went on until March 29, 1995 when players and team owners in agreement.
- The Vieques controversy.
- Crime levels in the U.S. peak in 1991, begin to fall afterwards, reaching the lowest levels since the late 1960s by end of decade.
- In the U.S. drug use reaches an all-time low in 1992 before increasing, reaching its peak in 1997 before declining again.
- Examples of the decade's worst natural disasters: Hurricane Andrew strikes South Florida in August 1992, the crippling Superstorm of March 1993 along the Eastern Seaboard, the devastating 1994 Northridge Earthquake in Los Angeles, the Great Hanshin earthquake in Kobe, Japan in January 1995, the Blizzard of 1996 in the eastern U.S., the deadly Hurricane Mitch which struck Central America in October 1998, and the destructive F-5 Oklahoma City tornado in May 1999, the August 1999 Izmit earthquake in Turkey, and the September 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan.
- People are evacuated from the volcanic Caribbean island of Montserrat, a British overseas territory. The Soufirre Hills erupt in 1995 and continued on until 2002.
- Mount Pinatubo, a dormant volcano in the island of Luzon in the Philippines erupted in 1991 to decimate nearby towns and an American air force base permanently abandoned by hot ash fall and under mudslides.
- Mother Teresa, the Roman Catholic nun who won the Nobel Peace Prize, dies at age 87.
- 21-year-old
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