2003
2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar), and also:
- The International Year of Freshwater
- The European Disability Year
Summary
Perhaps the defining global event of the year 2003 was the Invasion of Iraq launched by the United States, Britain, Spain, Australia and other allies. All over the world, many months in 2003 were devoted to the discussion, debate, protest, and organization of this war, making it probably the most discussed (and controversial) war in modern history. The war would ultimately depose longtime Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and begin a period of occupation that continued well into 2004.
2003 was also a landmark year for the European Union with many states from the former Soviet Bloc voting to join. The first wide-scale EU constitution was also drafted and will be either ratified or rejected by member states in 2004.
Over 30 nations held elections in 2003.
Events
January events
- January 1
- Luíz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of Brazil.
- Pascal Couchepin becomes President of the Confederation in Switzerland
- January 15 - The Supreme Court hands down its decision in Eldred v. Ashcroft allowing the extension of copyright terms.
- January 21 - Kevin Mitnick, a famous U.S. hacker, is allowed to use a computer again.
- January 24 - The new United States Department of Homeland Security officially begins operation.
- January 25 - Central Line train crashes into the tunnel wall at Chancery Lane station in London, injuring 34 people.
- January 30 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of Britain, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Poland, Denmark, and the Czech Republic release a statement, the letter of the eight, demonstrating support for the United States' plans for an invasion of Iraq.
February events
- February 1
- The Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrates over Texas upon reentry, killing all seven astronauts onboard
- In Northern Ireland, The Protestant UDA Belfast leader John Gregg is killed by a loyalist faction
- February 5 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell addresses the UN Security Council on Iraq.
- February 9 - Cricket World Cup begins in South Africa
- February 15 - Global protests against war on Iraq - more than six million people protest in over 600 cities worldwide, the largest war protest to take place before the war occurred.
- February 23 - New York City is the site of the 2003 Grammy Awards.
- February 26 - An American businessman is admitted to the Vietnam France Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam. WHO doctor Carlo Urbani report the unusual highly contagious disease to WHO. Both the businessman and Carlo Urbani die of SARS in March.
March events
- March 1
- Iraq disarmament crisis: The United Arab Emirates calls for Iraqi president Saddam Hussein to step down to avoid war. The sentiment is later echoed by Bahrain and Kuwait
- The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the United States Customs Service, and the United States Secret Service moves to the United States Department of Homeland Security
- Boxer Roy Jones Jr. beats John Ruiz to become WBA champion
- War on Terrorism: Authorities in Pakistan capture Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks along with money man Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi.
- March 5 - The Supreme Court of the United States by a 5-4 margin upholds California's "three strikes and you're out" law.
- March 11 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraqi fighters threaten two U.S. U-2 surveillance planes, flying missions for U.N. weapons inspectors, forcing them to abort their mission and return to base.
- March 12
- Zoran Djindjic assassinated in Belgrade
- WHO issues a global alert on SARS.
- Iraq disarmament crisis: British prime minister Tony Blair proposes an amendment to the possible 18th U.N. resolution, which would call for Iraq to meet certain benchmarks to prove that it was disarming. The amendment is immediately rejected by France, who promises to veto any new resolution.
- March 13 - Human evolution: The journal Nature reports that 350,000-year-old upright-walking human footprints had been found in Italy
- March 15 - Hu Jintao becomes president of the People's Republic of China, replacing Jiang Zemin.
- March 16 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of the United States, Britain, Portugal, and Spain meet at a summit in the Azores Islands. U.S. President Bush calls Monday, March 17th, the "moment of Truth", meaning that the "coalition of the willing" would make its final effort to extract a resolution from the U.N. Security Council that would give Iraq an ultimatum to disarm immediately or to be disarmed by force.
- March 16 - Largest co-ordinated worldwide vigil as part of the global protests against war on Iraq.
- March 17 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. President George W. Bush gives an ultimatum: Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and his sons must either leave Iraq, or face military action at a time of the U.S.'s choosing
- March 19 - First American bombs dropped on Baghdad, Iraq. President Saddam Hussein and his sons do not comply with President Bush's 48 hour mandate demanding their exit from Iraq.
- March 20 - 2003 Iraq war: Land troops from United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invade Iraq.
- March 22 - The United States and the United Kingdom begin their shock and awe campaign with a massive air strike on military targets in Baghdad.
- March 23 - Cricket World Cup ends as Australia win over India in Centurion, South Africa.
- March 29 - WHO doctor Carlo Urbani, who first identified SARS, dies of the disease.
April events
- April 3 - Passenger bus hits remote-controlled land mine in the Chechen capital, killing at least 8.
- April 9 - U.S. forces seize control of Baghdad, apparently ending the regime of Saddam Hussein.
- April 17 - The Stevens Report concludes that members of the RUC and British Army cooperated with the UDA against Catholics in Northern Ireland
- April 21 - Retired U.S. Army General Jay Garner becomes Interim Civil Administrator of Iraq.
May events
- May 1 - George W. Bush landed on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, in a Lockheed S-3 Viking, where he gave a speech announcing end of major combat in the Iraq war.
- May 12 - Suicide truck-bomb attack kills at least 60 at a government compound in northern Chechnya.
- May 14 - Female suicide bomber blows up explosives strapped to her waist in crowd of thousands of Muslim pilgrims, killing at least 18 people in Chechnya
- May 26 - A draft of the proposed European constitution is unveiled.
- May 31 - Eric Rudolph, the suspected person to have carried out the Centennial Olympic Park bombing is captured in North Carolina behind a Save-A-Lot store.
June events
- June 1 - The Peoples Republic of China begins filling the reservoir behind the massive Three Gorges Dam, raising the water level near the dam over 100 meters.
- June 4 - Martha Stewart and her broker are indicted for using privileged investment information and then obstructing a federal investigation. Stewart also resigned as chairperson and chief executive officer of Martha Stewart Living.
- June 5 - Female suicide bomber detonates bomb near a bus carrying soldiers and civilians to a military airfield in Mozdok, a major staging point for Russian troops in Chechnya, killing at least 16 people.
- June 15 - 2003 NBA Finals end San Antonio Spurs def New Jersey Nets 4 games to 2.
- June 23 - U.S. Supreme Court upholds affirmative action in university admissions in Grutter v. Bollinger
- June 26 - U.S. Supreme Court rules sodomy laws unconstitutional in Lawrence v. Texas
July events
- July 1 - 500,000 Hong Kong people march to protest Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23, which redefined treason controversially.
- July 2 - Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada is declared the Host City for the XXI Olympic Winter Games in 2010.
- July 5
- SARS is declared to be contained by WHO.
- Double suicide bombing at a Moscow rock concert kills the female attackers and 15 other people.
- July 6 - Residents of Corsica reject a referendum for increased autonomy for the region from France by a very narrow margin.
- July 7 - Canon Jeffrey John, first would-be gay bishop in the Church of England, withdraws his acceptance of the post of The Bishop of Reading after discussions with the church leaders
- July 10 - Russian security agent dies in Moscow while trying to defuse a bomb a woman had tried to carry into a cafe on central Moscow main street.
- July 16 - The Corsicans rejected a referendum for increased autonomy from France by a very thin majority: 50.98 percent against, and 49.02 percent for.
- July 18 Convention on the Future of Europe finishes its work and proposes the first European constitution
- The body of Dr. David Kelly's, a scientist at the Ministry of Defence, is found a few miles from his home, leading to the Hutton inquiry
- July 23 - Operation Warrior Sweep is the first major military deployment of the Afghan National Army
- July 24 - The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands, Operation Helpem Fren, lead by Australia, begins in the Solomon Islands
- July 30 - The last old-style Volkswagen Beetle rolls off its production line in Puebla, Mexico.
August events
- August 1 - Suicide bomber rams truck filled with explosives into a military hospital near Chechnya, killing 50 people, including Russian troops wounded in Chechnya.
- August 2 - The United Nations authorizes an international peacekeeping force for Liberia.
- August 11
- NATO takes over command of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan, marking its first major operation outside Europe in its 54-year-history.
- Jemaah Islamiah leader Riduan Isamuddin, better known as Hambali, is arrested in Bangkok, Thailand.
- August 14
- Widespread power outage affects northeast United States and Canada.
- 6.4 Richter scale earthquake near the Greek Ionian island of Lefkada - 24 injured
- August 25 - 52 killed in two bomb blasts in Mumbai, India.
- August 27 - Perigee of Mars
September events
- September 5 - Roller coaster accident at Disneyland injures 10 and kills one.
- September 10 - Swedish foreign minister Anna Lindh is stabbed in a Stockholm department store and dies the next day.
- September 14
- September 15 - ELN kidnaps 8 foreign tourists in the Ciudad Perdida - they demand a human rights investigation and release last of the hostages three months later
- September 16 - Two suicide bombers drive a truck laden with explosives into a government security services building near Chechnya, killing three people and injuring 25.
October events
- October 18- 2003 World Series stars Florida Marlins vs. New York Yankees.
- October 24 - Concorde makes its last commercial flight, bringing the era of airliner supersonic travel to a close, at least for the time being.
- October 25
- 2003 World Series ends Florida Marlins def New York Yankees 4 games to 2.
- Cedar Fire begins in San Diego County burning 280,000 acres (1,100 km²), 2,232 homes and killing 14
- September 27 - Smart 1 is launched.
- October 31 - Mahathir Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia after 22 years in power.
November events
- November 5 - Gary Ridgway, The "Green River Killer", confesses murders of 48 women
- November 9 - Lunar eclipse (the Americas, Europe, Africa, Central Asia)
- November 12 - Occupation of Iraq: In Nasiriya, Iraq, at least 23 people, among them the first Italian casualties of the 2003 Iraq war are killed in a suicide bomb attack on an Italian police base.
- November 15 - Two car bombs explode simultaneously in Istanbul, Turkey targeting two synagogues, killing at least 25 people and wounding more than 300; Al-Qaida claims responsibility.
- November 18
- US President George W. Bush makes a state visit to London in the midst of massive protests.
- Goodridge et al. v. Department of Public Health rules anti-same-sex marriage laws unconstitutional in Massachusetts
- November 20
- Several bombs explode in Istanbul, Turkey destroying the Turkish head office of HSBC Holdings and the British consulate.
- Michael Jackson is arrested by police on charges of child molestation, a charge that can carry an 8 year jail term.
- November 22 - England wins the Rugby Union World Cup defeating Australia 20-17 after extra time.
- November 23
- Beleaguered Georgian president Eduard Shevardnadze resigns following weeks of mass protests over flawed elections.
- Total solar eclipse (Antarctica)
- November 24 - The High Court in Glasgow imposes a minimum sentence of 27 years for Al Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi, the Libyan convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.
- November 26 - Last ever flight by Concorde.
December events
- December 1
- The use of hand-held mobile phones while driving is made illegal in Great Britain.
- Boeing chairman and CEO Phil Condit resigns unexpectedly. He is replaced by Lewis Platt as non-executive chairman and Harry Stonecipher as president and CEO.
- December 5 - Suicide bombing on commuter train in southern Russia kills 44 people. President Vladimir Putin condemns attack as bid to destabilize the country two days before Parliamentary election.
- December 7 - Parliamentary election in Russia.
- December 9 - Female suicide bomber blows herself up outside Moscow's National Hotel, across from the Kremlin and Red Square, killing five bystanders.
- December 12
- Paul Martin becomes the 21st Prime Minister of Canada
- Olympic Airlines, Greece's new flag carrier is launched.
- December 13 - Saddam Hussein, former President of Iraq, is captured in Tikrit by the U.S. 4th Infantry Division.
- December 16 - The United Kingdom announces plans to build a new runway at Stansted Airport in Essex and a short-haul runway at Heathrow Airport sparking anger from environmental groups.
- December 17 - The 100th birthday of aviation.
- December 18 - The Soham Murder Trial ends at the Old Bailey in London with Ian Huntley found guilty of two counts of murder. His girlfriend, Maxine Carr is found guilty of perverting the course of justice.
- December 20 - Libya admits that it was building a nuclear bomb.
- December 22
- An earthquake shakes up California, killing two people.
- Parmalat is first accused of falsifying accounts to the tune of USD $5 billion, later admitted by founder Calisto Tanzi; observers call it "Europe's Enron".
- December 23 - A terrier belonging to Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal attacks and kills a corgi belonging to Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal Family gather at Sandringham for Christmas.
- December 24
- A BSE outbreak in Washington state is announced. Several countries including Brazil, Australia and Taiwan place a ban on the import of beef from the United States of America.
- At the request of the US Embassy in Paris, the French Government orders Air France to cancel several flights between France and the US in response to terrorist concerns.
- The Spanish police thwarts an attempt by ETA to detonate 50 kg of explosives at 3:55 PM on Christmas Eve inside Madrid's busy Chamartín Station.
- December 25
- Queen Elizabeth II broadcasts a Christmas message to the British Commonwealth paying tribute to British troops in Iraq. Pope John Paul II's Christmas message calls for peace in the Middle East.
- Beagle 2 is scheduled to land on Mars, but nothing is heard from the lander.
- The President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, escapes the second assassination attempt in two weeks.
- December 26 - A massive earthquake devastates southeastern Iran. Over 40,000 people are reported to have been killed in the city of Bam.
- December 31 - The world's largest Hogmanay party in the Scottish capital Edinburgh is cancelled twenty minutes before midnight due to bad weather.
Births
May births
November births
- November 8 - Lady Louise Windsor, daughter of The Earl and Countess of Wessex
December births
- December 7 - Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, first daughter of Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
Deaths
For more deaths see: Deaths in 2003
January deaths
- January 5 - Roy Jenkins, British politician
- January 12 - Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine dictator
- January 12 - Maurice Gibb, Anglo-Australian musician, one-third of the Bee Gees
- January 26 - George Younger, 4th Viscount Younger of Leckie, British politician (b. 1931)
February deaths
- February 1 - The crew of STS-107; Michael P. Anderson, David M. Brown, Kalpana Chawla, Laurel Clark, Rick D. Husband, Willie McCool, Ilan Ramon
- February 14 - Dolly the sheep, the world's first cloned mammal
- February 27 - Fred McFeely Rogers, 74, "Mister Rogers" of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood
- February 28 - Roger Michael Needham, 68, professor of cryptography at Cambridge University
March deaths
- March 1 - Fidel Sánchez Hernández, former president of El Salvador (1967-1972) (b. 1917)
- March 9 - Bernard Dowiyogo, former president of Nauru (born 1946)
- March 12 - Zoran Djindjic, Prime Minister of Serbia (assassinated)
- March 16 - Rachel Corrie, American activist, member of the International Solidarity Movement
- March 26 - Daniel Patrick Moynihan, United States Senator from New York
- March 29 - Carlo Urbani, WHO doctor who discovered SARS
April deaths
- April 1
- Leslie Cheung, 46, Hong Kong singer/actor
- Hyosuke Kujiraoka, 87, a former vice speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan
- April 17 - Dr. Robert Atkins, 72, developed the Atkins Nutritional Approach
- April 18 - Daijiro Kato, MotoGP racer
- April 29 - Franco Corelli, Italian tenor (b. 1921)
May deaths
- May 5 - Walter Sisulu, anti-apartheid activist
- May 28
- Oleg Makarov, cosmonaut
- Ilya Prigogine, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1977
- Martha Scott, American actress
June deaths
- June 10 - Donald Regan, Chief of Staff and Treasury Secretary during the Reagan administration
- June 12 - Gregory Peck, actor
- June 26
- Sir Denis Thatcher, husband of The Baroness Thatcher, former UK Prime Minister
- Strom Thurmond, United States Senator
- Marc-Vivien Foé, Cameroon football player
- June 29 - Katharine Hepburn, American actress
July deaths
- July 1 - N!xau, Namibian actor (The Gods Must Be Crazy)
- July 4 - Barry White, singer
- July 16 - Carol Shields, Canadian author
- July 22
- Uday Hussein, Iraqi military leader; eldest son of Saddam Hussein
- Qusay Hussein, Iraqi military leader, younger son of Saddam Hussein
- July 25 - John Schlesinger, film director
- July 27 - Bob Hope, Anglo-American comedian, actor
August deaths
- August 15 - Idi Amin, Ugandan dictator
- August 21 - Wesley Willis, American musician
- August 23 - Imperio Argentina, Spanish singer and actress
- August 23 - Bobby Bonds, Major League baseball player
- Autust 23 - Jack Dyer, Australian rules football legend
- August 23 - John Geoghan, defrocked pedophile priest
- August 24 - Sir Wilfred Thesiger, British explorer
- August 26 - Jim Wacker, American college football coach
- August 27 - Pierre Poujade, French politician
- August 29 - Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim
- August 30 - Charles Bronson, actor
- August 30 - Donald Davidson, philosopher
September deaths
- September 1 - Sir Terry Frost, British artist
- September 3 - Paul Hill, executed for two anti-abortion murders
- September 5 - Gisele MacKenzie, singer
- September 7 - Warren Zevon, singer and songwriter
- September 7 - The Great Antonio, strongman and eccentric
- September 8 - Jaclyn Linetsky, Canadian voice actress
- September 8 - Leni Riefenstahl, German filmmaker
- September 9 - Larry Hovis, actor
- September 9 - Edward Teller, American physicist, "Father of the H-Bomb"
- September 11 - Ben Bril, Dutch boxer
- September 11 - Anna Lindh, Swedish foreign minister (assassinated)
- September 12 - Johnny Cash, American musician
- September 12 - John Ritter, American actor
- September 13 - Frank O'Bannon, Governor of Indiana
- September 15 - Jack Brymer, British clarinettist
- September 15 - Yetunde Price, sister of American tennis-players Venus and Serena Williams
- September 16 - Erich Hallhuber, Bavarian actor
- September 16 - Sheb Wooley, actor, singer
- September 19 - Slim Dusty, Australian country music singer
- September 20 - Lord Williams of Mostyn, British Cabinet minister, Leader of the House of Lords
- September 20 - Simon Vengai Muzenda, Zimbabwe politician, vice president of the Republic since 1987
- September 22 - Gordon Jump, American actor
- September 25 - Franco Modigliani, Nobel Prize-winning economist
- September 25 - Aquila al-Hashimi, Iraqi politician, member of the Governing Council
- September 25 - George Plimpton, American Renaissance man
- September 25 - Edward Said, professor at Columbia University, proponent of Palestinian rights
- September 26 - Robert Palmer, singer (b. 1949)
- September 27 - Donald O'Connor, entertainer, actor
- September 28 - Althea Gibson, African-American tennis and golf pioneer
- September 28 - Elia Kazan, American movie director
October deaths
- October 2 - John T. Dunlop, Secretary of Labor under Gerald Ford
- October 3 - William Steig, American cartoonist and children's author; creator of Shrek
- October 4 - Sid McMath, former governor of Arkansas
- October 5 - Denis Quilley, British actor
- October 5 - Dan Snyder, Atlanta Thrashers hockey player
- October 6 - Mildred O'Neill, widow of former Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Tip O'Neill
- October 10 - Eugene Istomin, American pianist
- October 12 - Jim Cairns, Australian politician
- October 12 - Willie Shoemaker, Hall of Fame jockey
- October 13 - Bertram Brockhouse, Nobel Prize-winning Canadian physicist
- October 13 - Joan B. Kroc, philanthropist, widow of McDonald's founder Ray Kroc
- October 14 - Patrick Dalzel-Job, inspiration for Ian Fleming's James Bond
- October 15 - Bertram N. Brockhouse, Canadian physicist
- October 15 - Ben Metcalfe, Greenpeace activist and co-founder
- October 16 - Stu Hart, patriarch of wrestling family
- October 16 - László Papp, Hungarian boxer
- October 16 - Avni Arbas, Turkish artist
- October 18 - Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Spanish writer
- October 18 - Preston Smith, Governor of Texas (b. 1912)
- October 19 - Margaret Murie, "Mother of the modern conservationist movement"
- October 19 - Faith Fancher, television journalist and breast cancer awareness activist
- October 19 - Michael Hegstrand, "Road Warrior Hawk"
- October 19 - Alija Izetbegovic, Bosnian politician and president
- October 21 - Fred Berry, American actor
- October 21 - Luis A. Ferré, former governor of Puerto Rico
- October 21 - Louise Day Hicks, US politician
- October 21 - Elliott Smith, American musician-songwriter
- October 23 - Tony Capstick, British actor, comedian, musician and broadcaster
- October 23 - Soong May-ling, widow of Chiang Kai-shek
- October 27 - Rod Roddy, game show announcer (The Price is Right)
- October 29 - Hal Clement, author
- October 30 - Franco Corelli, Italian tenor
- October 31 - Richard Neustadt, political historian
November deaths
- November 3 - Rasul Gamzatov, Avarian/Soviet/Russian poet, called the "People's poet of Dagestan"
- November 4 - Richard Wollheim, British philosopher
- November 5 - Bobby Hatfield, American musician, one-half of the Righteous Brothers
- November 6 - Eduardo Palomo, Mexican actor
- November 6 - Crash Holly, professional wrestler
- November 6 - Rie Mastenbroek, Dutch swimmer, triple Olympic champion
- November 9 - Art Carney, television actor
- November 9 - Gordon Onslow Ford, surrealist painter
- November 10 - Canaan Banana, first president of independent Zimbabwe
- November 10 - Irv "Kup" Kupcinet, columnist, television personality
- November 12 - Jonathan Brandis, American actor (suicide)
- November 12 - Penny Singleton, actress
- November 12 - Tony Thompson, drummer for The Power Station
- November 13 - Kellie Waymire, actress
- November 14 - Dorothy Loudon, actress
- November 15 - Ray Lewis, first Canadian-born black Olympic medalist
- November 16 - Bettina Goislard, UNHCR relief worker
- November 17 - Arthur Conley, soul singer
- November 17 - Don Gibson, singer-songwriter
- November 18 - Michael Kamen, composer
- November 20 - Robert Addie, British actor
- November 20 - David Dacko, first president of the Central African Republic
- November 20 - Eugene Kleiner, entrepreneur and co-founder of Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers venture capital firm
- November 20 - Roger Short, the British Consulate General in Istanbul, Turkey
- November 20 - Kerem Yilmazer, Turkish actor
- November 24 - Hugh Kenner, literary critic
- November 24 - Warren Spahn, Baseball Hall of Famer (b. 1921)
- November 26 - Stefan Wul, French science fiction writer
- November 26 - Soulja Slim, rapper
- November 27 - Talal al-Rasheed, Saudi poet
- November 28 - Harold von Braunhut, American, creator of Amazing Sea Monkeys and Ku Klux Klan and Aryan Nations member
- November 30 - Gertrude Ederle, American swimmer
December deaths
- December 1 - Clark Kerr, first Chancellor of the University of California, Berkeley, 1952-58, and President of the University of California, 1958-67
- December 2 - Alan Davidson, author
- December 3 - David Hemmings, British actor
- December 6 - Jose-Maria Jimenez, professional cyclist
- December 6 - Carlos Manuel Arana Osorio, President of Guatemala 1970-74
- December 6 - Jerry Tuite, professional wrestler
- December 7 - Raúl Vale, Venezuelan-Mexican entertainer
- December 7 - Carl F. H. Henry, American evangelical theologian, founder of Christianity Today magazine
- December 7 - Azie Taylor Morton, former Treasurer of the United States
- December 8 - Rubén González, Cuban pianist, member of the Buena Vista Social Club
- December 9 - Paul Simon, US Senator from Illinois
- December 11 - Ahmadou Kourouma, author from Côte d'Ivoire
- December 11 - Paulos Tzadua, Roman Catholic cardinal from Ethiopia
- December 12 - Heydar Aliyev, former President of Azerbaijan (b. 1923)
- December 12 - Keiko, the killer whale in the Free Willy movies
- December 12 - Fadwa Toukan, Palestinian poet
- December 13 - William V. Roth, Jr., United States Senator from Delaware
- December 14 - Jeanne Crain, American actress
- December 14 - Blas Ople, foreign minister of the Philippines
- December 15 - Johnny Cunningham, Scottish musician, member of Silly Wizard
- December 15 - George Fisher, American political cartoonist
- December 15 - Keith Magnuson, National Hockey League player (car accident)
- December 16 - Robert Stanfield, Canadian politician
- December 16 - Gary Stewart, Country music singer (suicide)
- December 17 - Ed Devereaux, Australian actor
- December 17 - Otto Graham, NFL quarterback
- December 19 - Hope Lange, American actress
- December 19 - Peter Carter-Ruck, British libel lawyer
- December 22 - Dave Dudley, Country music singer
- December 26 - Sir Alan Bates, British actor
- December 26 - Hope Lange, television actress
- December 27 - Ivan Calderon Puerto Rican major league baseball star (b. 1962) (murdered)
- Decmber 27 - Bob Monkhouse, English comedian and game show host (b. 1928)
- December 28 - Dinsdale Landen, British actor (b. 1932)
- December 29 - Earl Hindman, American actor (b. 1942)
- December 30 - John Gregory Dunne, American novelist and screenwriter
- December 30 - Anita Mui, Hong Kong actress (b. 1963)
- December 31 - Arthur R. von Hippel German-born American scientist and professor at MIT
Nobel Prizes
- Physics:
- Alexei Alexeevich Abrikosov, Russia and United States
- Vitaly Lazarevich Ginzburg, Russia
- Anthony James Leggett, United Kingdom and United States, "for pioneering contributions to the theory of superconductors and superfluids"
- Chemistry:
- Peter Agre, United States "for discoveries concerning channels in cell membranes", "for the discovery of water channels"
- Roderick MacKinnon, United States "for structural and mechanistic studies of ion channels"
- Physiology or Medicine:
- Paul Lauterbur, United States
- Sir Peter Mansfield, United Kingdom "for their discoveries concerning magnetic resonance imaging"
- Literature:
- John Maxwell Coetzee, South Africa, "who in innumerable guises portrays the surprising involvement of the outsider"
- Peace:
- Shirin Ebadi, Iran "for her efforts for democracy and human rights"
- Robert F. Engle, United States "for methods of analyzing economic time series with time-varying volatility"
- Clive W. J. Granger, United Kingdom "for methods of analyzing economic time series with common trends"
- David Lange "for his steadfast work over many years for a world free of nuclear weapons"
- Walden Bello and Nicanor Perlas "for their outstanding efforts in educating civil society about the effects of corporate globalisation, and how alternatives to it can be implemented"
- The Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice "for the rigour with which it has developed and disseminated its wide-ranging reform programme, based on social justice and accountability and the skill with which it is now applying the same values to promoting reconciliation with North Korea".
- SEKEM "for a business model for the 21st century in which commercial success is integrated with and promotes the social and cultural development of society through the 'economics of love'"
Government, Religious, and Intl. Org. Leaders
- List of state leaders in 2003
- List of religious leaders in 2003
- List of international organization leaders in 2003
External links
- 2003 Year in Review - comprehensive listing of 2003 reviews and lists
- 2003 Year-End Google Zeitgeist - Google's Yearly List of Major Events and Top Searches for 2003