April – The British occupation of the Faroe Islands starts (lasting until 1945). 1940 April Flag of the Faroe Islands officially recognized (by the British government). 1946 September – A referendum on either a proposal of self-government or independence results in a small majority for independence. 1948 April The home rule act comes into power giving the Faroes a degree of autonomy. 1953 – The Constitution of Denmark (Grundloven) allowed the Faroe Islands as well as Greenland two members in the Danish Parliament. 1957 – On 6 February Útvarp Føroya (now Kringvarp Føroya) started to broadcast Faroese radio. 1973 – Denmark joins the European Economic Community, but the Faroes opt to remain outside the EEC to avoid the Common Fisheries Policy. 1988 – The Faroe Islands became a member of FIFA 1989 – Faroe Islands is host for the Island Games. 1992 – On 6 October, the bank Sjóvinnubankin declares bankruptcy starting the worst economic depression in Faroese history. 21st century 2005 – The Takeover Act (Overtagelsesloven) of 24 June 2005 which is an extension to the Self-governing Act of 1948, grants the Faroe Islands extended self-rule. The Constitution of Denmark (1953), The Self-governing Act (1948) and The Takeover Act (2005) make up the legal rights of the Faroe Islands within the Danish Realm. 2007 – The Faroese government took over the responsibilities of the only airport in the Faroe Islands, Vága Floghavn. Until this day the airport was run by Danish authorities (Statens Luftfartsvæsen). 2007 – The Faroese government took over the responsibilities of the Faroese Church (Fólkakirkjan) which until then had been Danish. 2013 – In July 2013 the EU imposed sanctions to the Faroe Islands due to a dispute over the fishing quota of herring and mackerel. The boycott started on 28 August 2013, the boycott implies that Faroese vessels carrying herring or mackerel are banned from all EU ports, including Denmark, Sweden and Finland. The Faroe Islands can no longer export herring or mackerel to EU countries as long the boycott persists. See also Timeline of Icelandic history Timeline of Swedish history References History of the Faroe Islands Regional timelines