VII. The Contemporary Period, 1945–2000 > H. The Pacific Region, 1944–2000 > 1. The Islands, 1946–2000 > 1999, Feb
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  The Encyclopedia of World History.  2001.
 
 
1999, Feb
 
The leader of Vanuatu's independence movement and its first prime minister, Father Walter Lini, died on Feb. 2. Lini served as prime minister from 1980–91.  1
 
2000, Jan. 10
 
Kessai Note became the new president of the Marshall Islands.  2
 
Feb
 
The UN formally admitted Tuvalu as the 189th full member.  3
 
March
 
The Fiji Court of Appeal, comprising judges from Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, and Papua New Guinea, upheld a Fiji high court ruling that the 1997 constitution had not been abrogated.  4
 
May
 
George Speight and six armed gunmen stormed the Fiji parliament and held the government hostage for 50 days.  5
 
May
 
Papua New Guinea's first stock exchange, the Port Moresby Stock Exchange (POMOX), opened for business.  6
 
May
 
A Labour Party–led coalition won Fiji's general election, with Mahendra Chaudhry becoming the first Fijian of Indian descent to become prime minister.  7
 
May 19
 
Fiji's first Indian prime minister, Mahendra Chaudhry, took office.  8
 
June 5
 
A coup attempt in the Solomon Islands ignited factional fighting in the country's capital of Honiara.  9
 
Aug. 4
 
A military takeover of the Fiji government that began with the May 19 abduction of Prime Minister Chaudhry ended when rebel leader George Speight was charged with treason.  10
 
Sept. 14
 
Kiribati, Nauru, and Tonga were admitted to the UN.  11
 
Oct
 
The Pacific Islands Forum met in Tarawa, the capital of Kiribati, and endorsed the Biketawa Declaration, outlining measures member states could take to preserve democracy in the islands.  12
 
 
 
The Encyclopedia of World History, Sixth edition. Peter N. Stearns, general editor. Copyright © 2001 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Maps by Mary Reilly, copyright © 2001 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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