2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operations, and human rights concerns arose surrounding the treatment of suspected terrorists. Elsewhere, the Colombian conflict and the Nepalese Civil War represented some of the most severe militant conflicts, while the conflict between India and Pakistan was the only one between two sovereign nations. Religious tensions permeated the year, including violence between Hindus and Muslims in India during violent riots and other attacks and attacks on Jews in response to the Second Intifada. The Catholic Church grappled with scrutiny amid sexual abuse cases.
Timor-Leste was established as a new sovereign nation, and the African Union began operating as a new intergovernmental organization. The International Criminal Court was founded in July. The global economy was stagnant as it slowly moved past the early 2000s recession. South America endured an economic crisis, and the telecommunications and information technology industries faced their own economic declines. The Euro was introduced as a new currency at the beginning of the year.
The year 2002 was the second hottest on record at the time. Eruptions of Mount Nyiragongo severely affected surrounding populations in central Africa. The discovery of Quaoar in October challenged the conventional definition of a planet. Small RNA was discovered in 2002, and the human ancestor Sahelanthropus was first described.
Norway won the most gold medals in the 2002 Winter Olympics, which were held in Salt Lake City. The popular film franchises Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings saw continued success, with The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers becoming the highest-grossing film of the year, while James Bond and Star Wars were less successful than other franchise installments. Pop music lost its popularity in 2002 amid the rise of country and hip hop, with hip hop artist Eminem producing the year's most successful album, The Eminem Show.
Population
The world population on January 1, 2002, was estimated to be 6.272 billion people, and it increased to 6.353 billion people by January 1, 2003. An estimated 134.0 million births and 52.5 million deaths took place in 2002. The average global life expectancy was 67.1 years, an increase of 0.3 years from 2001. The number of global refugees was approximately 12 million at the beginning of 2002, but it declined to 10.3 million by the end of the year. Approximately 2.4 million refugees were repatriated in 2002, of which 2 million were Afghan. 293,000 additional refugees were displaced in 2002, primarily from Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Somalia, Ivory Coast, and the Central African Republic.Conflicts
There were 31 armed conflicts in 2002 that caused at least 25 fatalities. Five of these resulted in at least 1,000 fatalities: the Burundian Civil War, the Colombian conflict, the Kashmir insurgency, the Nepalese Civil War, and the Second Sudanese Civil War. Among developed nations in 2002, national defense shifted toward counterterrorism after the September 11 attacks and the invasion of Afghanistan the previous year. Conflicts in Afghanistan, Chechnya, Israel, and the Philippines were directly related to countering Islamic terrorism.Internal conflicts
The Colombian conflict escalated after far-left insurgents occupied demilitarized zones and kidnapped Íngrid Betancourt, effectively ending peace talks. The insurgents began bombing cities, and over 200,000 Colombians were displaced by the conflict in 2002.The Nepalese Civil War escalated in 2002, with casualties approximately equaling the combined totals from 1996 to 2001; half of this increase was civilian casualties, as civilians were targeted by both the Nepali government and the communist insurgents. Chechen insurgents in Russia escalated their attacks during the Second Chechen War, destroying a Russian Mil Mi-26 in August and causing a hostage crisis in Moscow. The Second Liberian Civil War also escalated, causing widespread displacement of civilians.
Conflicts that saw some form of resolution in 2002 include the Eelam War III in Sri Lanka, which was halted with a ceasefire agreement in February, and the Angolan Civil War, which was resolved in April with a ceasefire between the Angolan government and UNITA. Internationally brokered peace talks advanced in the Second Sudanese Civil War, some factions of the Somali Civil War, and the Second Congo War, with the latter producing an agreement on December 17 to create a Congolese transitional government. Afghanistan underwent its first year without direct military conflict in over two decades, though sporadic attacks were carried out by the Taliban insurgency and al-Qaeda. An agreement was reached with the government of Burundi and the CNDD-FDD on December 3, but the other major faction in Burundi, the Palipehutu-FNL, did not participate in peace talks.
The largest attack on civilians in 2002 was a series of bombings in Bali that killed or injured hundreds on October 12, with Australian tourists making up a large portion of the victims. Major attacks also took place in Kenya on November 28, bombing Israeli citizens at a hotel and making a failed attempt to shoot down an airplane boarded by Israelis. The Washington D.C. area was the subject of several sniper attacks the same month, killing ten people. Europe underwent a large number of mass shootings throughout the year, including an attack on a town council meeting in France on March 27 that killed eight councilors and a school shooting in Germany on April 26—one of the deadliest in the world with 18 fatalities.
International conflicts
The only direct conflict between nations in 2002 was the India–Pakistan standoff in Kashmir, beginning in late 2001. This conflict was primarily one of brinkmanship, with the threat of nuclear warfare. Riots in Gujarat and suicide bombings in Jammu further escalated tensions. However by June 2002 the conflict had ended.The Second Intifada continued in 2002 between the Israel Defense Forces and Palestinian paramilitary groups with an escalation in violence. Palestinian suicide bombings became coordinated to maximize the number of civilian casualties, while the Israeli military killed approximately twice as many Palestinians in retaliation. In response to the suicide bombings, Israel carried out Operation Defensive Shield in March. Under this operation, Israel occupied much of West Bank, and it and briefly held Palestinian president Yasser Arafat under house arrest. The Battle of Jenin was particularly destructive, with the United Nations finding both parties to be irresponsible regarding collateral damage.
Culture
Art and architecture
Economic downturn in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks limited the art industry in 2002. Organizations were less willing to give patronage, and tourists were less willing to visit art exhibitions and museums, particularly in New York and the Middle East. The Documenta11 exhibition took place in Kassel, Germany, contributing to the early movement of art globalization with its focus on experimental and documentary works from developing nations. Traditional visual art was mostly replaced by film and photography at the exhibition. Critically acclaimed paintings in 2002 include The Upper Room, a collection of paintings by Chris Ofili based on a drawing of a monkey by Andy Warhol, and Dispersion, an abstract work by Julie Mehretu.The rebuilding of the World Trade Center was a major focus in the architectural world, and various exhibitions were held to showcase design concepts. The Tribute in Light was implemented on the site during the interim. Egypt began accepting designs for the Grand Egyptian Museum. New structures constructed or opened in 2002 include the Austrian Cultural Forum in New York, the Imperial War Museum North in Manchester, the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles, and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria. The Bronx Developmental Center in New York and Fallingwater in Pennsylvania were renovated, and the Maslon House was demolished in California.
Media
Popular media
The highest-grossing film globally in 2002 was The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, followed by Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Spider-Man. The highest-grossing non-English film was Hero, the 28th highest-grossing film of the year. Film was marked by several unexpected successes and failures in 2002, including the underwhelming performances of the Star Wars film Attack of the Clones, the James Bond film Die Another Day, and the Disney film Treasure Planet, as well as the word-of-mouth success of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Critically acclaimed films from 2002 include Adaptation,' Far from Heaven,' and Talk to Her.''''Music sales in 2002 amounted to about 3 billion units, a decline of 8% from 2001. CD albums remained the dominant form of music, making up 89% of the market. DVD music sales increased by 40%, while cassette tape music sales decreased by 36%. Pop music saw a major decline in 2002 as it was overtaken by country and hip hop music. Globally, the best-selling albums in 2002 were The Eminem Show by Eminem, followed by Let Go by Avril Lavigne and the Elvis Presley greatest hits album ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits. The best-selling non-English album was Mensch by German singer Herbert Grönemeyer, the 29th best-selling album overall.
Sony and Microsoft introduced online gaming services for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles, respectively. Critically acclaimed video games released in 2002 include Eternal Darkness, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Metroid Prime, Metroid Fusion, and Super Mario Sunshine. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault was influential in the war-based first-person shooter genre with its portrayal of grand cinematic battles. 2002 was the final year of traditional survival horror before it was overtaken by action-based survival horror games in franchises such as Resident Evil.