Timeline Sunday 1 April 2001

Events on Sunday 1 April 2001 4

• 2001 First country to legalise same-sex marriage A social first The Netherlands becomes the first country in the world to open civil marriage to same-sex couples, reflecting its long liberal-progressive tradition.
• 2001 Hainan Island incident US spy plane and Chinese fighter collide On 1 April 2001 a US Navy EP-3 surveillance aircraft collided with a Chinese fighter jet over the South China Sea, killing the Chinese pilot. The damaged US plane made an emergency landing on Hainan Island, where its 24 crew were detained for eleven days. The standoff strained US-China relations early in the Bush presidency.
• 2001 Netherlands legalises same-sex marriage First country to open civil marriage to same-sex couples On 1 April 2001 a Dutch law took effect allowing same-sex couples to marry with the same rights as opposite-sex couples, including adoption. Four couples wed in Amsterdam city hall at midnight. The Netherlands was the first country in the world to take the step.
• 2001 Slobodan Milošević arrested Former Yugoslav leader detained in Belgrade Serbian police arrested former president Slobodan Milošević at his Belgrade villa on 1 April 2001 after an armed standoff, initially on corruption charges. In June he was transferred to the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague. He became the first former head of state to face an international court.