The FSM Constitution entered into force, now marked as Constitution Day.

What happened

Voters in Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap had approved the constitution on 12 July 1978, while the Marshall Islands and Palau rejected it. When it took effect, the four districts became a self-governing federation, though the islands were still a UN trust territory run by the United States. One historian, Jensen, gives 19 May, but the project’s research treats 10 May, now Constitution Day, as the correct date.

Why it matters

This is the founding date of the FSM government; the trusteeship itself ended only with the Compact in 1986 and a UN Security Council vote in 1990.