Biography
Dr Danilo Türk
Former President of the Republic of Slovenia
Biography
Dr Danilo Türk obtained his law degree in 1975 at University of Ljubljana, Slovenia and in 1978 he obtained his masters degree in law from Belgrade University. In 1982, he obtained his doctorate from the Faculty of Law in Ljubljana.
He taught at the Faculty of Law in Ljubljana since 1982 and became tenured professor of international law (1995). From 1984 to 1992 he was member of the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities as an independent expert and acted in his personal capacity.
In 1987 Dr Türk initiated and participated in the establishment of the Human Rights Council in Slovenia. In July and August 1991 he informally represented the still unrecognized Slovenia in Geneva in contacts with representatives of the UN, the CSCE and the Council of Europe. From September 1991 to August 1992 he was a member of the Slovene delegation at the Conference on Yugoslavia.
In September 1992 Dr Türk assumed the position of Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to the United Nations. During his term as the representative of Slovenia on the Security Council from 1998 to 1999 he dealt with the issues of Kosovo, Iraq, Libya, East Timor, Congo among others.
Following the successful conclusion of Slovenia’s term as non-permanent member of the Security Council, Dr Türk was appointed as UN Assistant Secretary-General for Political Affairs. For more than five years his tasks included analytical and consulting activity relating to the crisis situations of the time, such as the Balkans (in particular Kosovo and Macedonia), Palestine, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Iraq, Myanmar, North Korea, East Timor, Columbia, Haiti, Venezuela and others.
After 13 years in New York Dr Türk returned to Slovenia in the summer of 2005. He resumed teaching International Law and related subjects at the Faculty of Law in Ljubljana. Since May 2006 he has served as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Law. He was elected President of the Republic of Slovenia on 11 November 2007. His term of office ended on 22 December 2012.
Dr Danilo Türk is married and has one daughter.
Dr Danilo Türk - Biographical data
Personal data
Surname, Given names
Profession
Professor of International Law, Diplomat
currently: Former President of the Republic of Slovenia
Born (Date, Place of Birth)
19 February 1952,
Maribor, Slovenia
Parents
Father: ©tefan,
Mother: Marija
Spouse
Children
Education (institute, degree, date)
Law Degree, University of Ljubljana, 1975;
Master of Law, University of Belgrade, 1978;
Doctor of Law, University of Ljubljana, 1982
Languages
Slovene, English, French, German, Croatian, Serbian
Career
Professor of International Law (1982-1992 and again 2005- 2007);
Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the UN, New York (1992-1999);
Assistant-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, UN, New York, (2000-2005);
President of the Republic of Slovenia, (December 2007 – December 2012)
Party Memberships
Achievements
Books and Publications
Books:
The Principle of Non-Intervention in International Law and in International Relations, Ljubljana, 1984 (in Slovene);
Foundations of International LawBooks:, Ljubljana, 2007 (in Slovene, also translated into Hungarian and Czech);
On the Path of Transformation, Ljubljana, 2009 (in Slovene);
Publications:
UN Reports on freedom of expresion and on the realization of economic, social and cultural rights;
over 100 articles in various law journals
Orders and Decorations
· Knight Grand Cross, The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, United Kingdom (2008)
· Grand Cross with Diamonds, Order of the Sun of Peru (2008)
· Commander, First Class, Order of the White Rose of Finland, Finland (2010)
· Knight-Grand Cross, Order of Saint-Charles, Monaco (2011)
· Knight Grand Cross with Cordon, Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, Italy (2011)
· Grand Star, Decoration on Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria, Austria (2011)
· Grand Cross, Royal Norwegian Order of St Olav, Norway (2011)
· Kt Grand Cross, Order of the Falcon, Iceland (2011)
Awards and Prizes
· Protector of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts (2008)
· Gold medal, Széchenyi Scientific Society, Hungary (2008)
· Arthur J. Goldberg Award, Touro Law College, USA (2008)
· Honorary Professor of the Academy of Public Administration, Astana, Kazahstan (2009)
· Ilyas Afandiyev International Prize, Azerbaijan (2010)
· Honorary Doctorate, University of Szeged, Hungary (2010)
· Honorary Doctorate, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Ukraine (2011)
· Medal of the European Court of Auditors (2012)
· Honorary Doctorate, Moscow State Institute of International Relations, Russia (2012)
Ideas and Projects
· On UN reform in the area of human rights (2005);
· On the reform of the UN Security Council (2008);
· Humanitarian assistance to disabled children in Gaza (2009);
· Founder of "Let Them Dream - Danilo Türk Foundation" for assistance to children - victims of violence (2010)
Other
Personal Philosophy
Recreations
hiking, cross-country skiing
Hobby
Contact
Office Address
®elezna cesta 14, SI - 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Office telephone and fax
phone: +386 1 478 12 21
fax: +386 1 478 11 91
E-mail