Barbara Miklič Türk

Barbara Miklič Türk
Miklič Türk in 2009
First Lady of Slovenia
In role 23 December 2007 – 22 December 2012
President	Danilo Türk
Preceded by	Vacant (2002–2007)
Succeeded by	Tanja Pečar
Personal details
Born	Barbara Miklič 1948 (age 76–77)

Barbara Miklič Türk (née Miklič, born 1948) is a Slovenian politician, who was First Lady of Slovenia from 2007 to 2012, when her husband Danilo Türk was President.

Personal life

Miklič was born in 1948 in Ljubljana, Socialist Republic of Slovenia (now the capital of the Republic of Slovenia). Her father was a miner and geophysical engineer, and her mother was a microbiologist.^[1] During her teenage years, she lived with her family in Sudan, and went to a Catholic school there.^[1] In 1975, she met Danilo Türk whilst working as a librarian at the United Nations.^[1] The couple married a year later, and have a daughter, Helen.^[1]

Political career

In 2006, Barbara's husband Danilo became the third President of the Republic of Slovenia, and as such, Barbara Miklič Türk became the First Lady.^[1][2][3] Speaking in 2010, Miklič Türk said that the role was less well-defined than the First Lady of the United States, and mostly consisted of accompanying her husband on state business.^[3]

In 2008, Miklič Türk attended the first state visit of Queen Elizabeth II since Slovenia's independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. During the visit, she spoke with them about non-governmental organisations.^[3][4] In 2010, Miklič Türk hosted a conference for Finnish volunteer organisations in the fields of health and social care.^[5] In 2011, she attended the opening of the Harpa concert hall in Reykjavík, Iceland.^[6] During a state visit from the Emir of Qatar, Miklič Türk prepared a visit for the First Lady of Qatar to the University of Ljubljana to meet the rector and discuss inter-nation co-operation.^[3]

References

1. "Barbara Miklič-Türk – kratek življenjepis" (in Slovenian). Government of Slovenia. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
2. "Slovenia nominates its ex-president Turk as candidate for U.N. secretary". Reuters. 23 December 2015. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
3. "Intervju: Barbara Miklič Türk, soproga predsednika države". Viva (in Slovenian). 18 October 2010. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
4. "Queen begins Slovenia state visit". BBC News. 21 October 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
5. "Barbara Miklič Türk gostila predstavnike finskih prostovoljskih organizacij". Slovenian Press Agency (in Slovenian). 5 May 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
6. "Photos: Grand Opening of New Iceland Concert Hall Harpa". Iceland Review. 6 May 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2018.