Thursday, January 30, 1997
Today's events
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An international congress on education opens in Havana.
Pakistan holds national and provincial elections.
The Car of the Century organization will announce in Amsterdam the 200 cars eligible for election.
Romanian President Emil Constantinescu will visit NATO headquarters for talks with alliance chief Javier Solana in Brussels to plead for the ex-communist country's chances of joining NATO in
a first wave of admissions.
President Clinton meets with governors attending the National Governor's Association meeting in Washington, D.C.
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On the horizon
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On Tuesday, February 4, President Clinton delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress.
On Wednesday, February 5, NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana is expected to visit Turkey.
On Thursday, February 6, President Lee Teng-hui will deliver his Chinese New Year speech in Taipei.
On Friday, February 7, the Chess International Tournament will begin in Ubeda, Spain.
On Saturday, February 8, the annual Snow Festival is scheduled will begin in Japan.
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On this day
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In 1014, King Sweyn of Denmark I died and was succeeded by his
son, Canute II the Great. After King Ethelred II of England
ordered a massacre of Danes in 1002, Sweyn invaded Britain and
conquered much of the country.
In 1194, Henry VI of Germany released King Richard I (the
Lion-Heart) of England, captured during the Third Crusade.
In 1807, Montevideo was taken by British forces led by Sir
Samuel Auchmuty.
In 1867, Prince Mutsuhito became Emperor Meiji of Japan at the
age of 14 and reigned until 1912.
In 1913, the 16th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, giving the federal government the power to impose and collect taxes on income.
In 1917, the United States broke off diplomatic relations with
Germany after Berlin announced a policy of unrestricted
submarine warfare.
In 1919, Kiev was captured by the Bolsheviks.
In 1919, the first meeting of the League of Nations took place
in Paris.
In 1924, Woodrow Wilson, 28th president of the United States,
died. His presidency was memorable for America's participation
in World War I and his championship of the League of Nations.
In 1931, a huge earthquake struck New Zealand, almost
destroying the towns of Napier and Hastings.
In 1945, U.S. aircraft dropped 3,000 tons of explosives on
Berlin.
In 1954, Queen Elizabeth II arrived in Australia for the first
visit by a reigning monarch.
In 1958, the Benelux Economic Union Treaty between Belgium,
Luxembourg and Netherlands was signed.
In 1959, singers Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper
were killed in a plane crash in the United States.
In 1960, British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan foreshadowed
the decolonization of Africa, telling the South African
parliament: "The wind of change is blowing through the
continent."
In 1966, the first controlled landing on the moon was made by
the Soviet unmanned spacecraft Luna IX.
In 1969, the Palestine National Congress appointed Yasser
Arafat head of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
In 1977, the chairman of the Provisional Military Government
in Ethiopia, Brigadier Gen. Teferi Benti, and his closest associates
were executed by supporters of the first vice-chairman, Lt.-Col.
Mengistu Haile Mariam.
In 1978, the European Economic Community and China initialed
their first trade agreement.
In 1981, Gro Harlem Brundtland was elected Norway's first
woman prime minister following the resignation of Odvar Nordli.
In 1992, Argentine President Carlos Menem signed a decree
opening all files on Nazis who fled to South America after World
War II.
In 1994, President Clinton announced the lifting of the U.S.
trade embargo against Vietnam, marking a dramatic shift in
relations chilled for decades by war and postwar hostility.
In 1994, the U.S. space shuttle Discovery blasted off,
carrying five American astronauts and a Russian cosmonaut.
In 1994, President Boris Yeltsin signed a treaty with Georgia
reasserting Russia's military influence in the former Soviet
republic.
In 1994, the International Court of Justice, in a ruling on a
20-year border dispute, rejected Libya's claim to a huge swathe
of neighboring Chad's territory.
In 1996, an earthquake measuring 7.0 rocked southwestern China, killing at least 302 people and injuring 15,000.
In 1996, Guinean President Lansana Conte reached agreement
with the military to end a revolt sparked by a pay dispute.
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Newslink
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Today is the 38th anniversary of the death of the legendary rock-and-roll pioneer Buddy Holly, which inspired Don McLean's rock anthem, "American Pie." Holly was killed in a place crash along with The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson) and Richie Valens in a cornfield near Mason City, Iowa. To learn more, or to just remember, click here.
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Holidays and more
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Today is Heroes Day in Mozambique.
It's a Provincial Anniversary in New Zealand.
Tome and Principe celebrate Liberty Heroes Day today.
Actor Joey Bishop is 79.
Actress Blythe Danner is 54.
Basketball player Vlade Divac is 29.
Actress Morgan Fairchild is 47.
Actor Nathan Lane is 41.
Football Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton is 57.
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Sources: Reuters,
Chase's Calendar of Events 1997, J.P. Morgan
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