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Leigh Turner

Ambassador to Austria and UK Permanent Representative to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Vienna

Part of UK in Turkey

28th November 2012

17 views on stopping violence against women

What do actors, newscasters, diplomats, writers, business leaders, journalists and politicians have in common?

All have contributed statements to the UK in Turkey website to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

This is powerful and important stuff. The UK supports the goal of tackling violence against women; and on 29 May, the British Foreign Secretary launched an initiative to prevent sexual violence in conflict regions.

The UK welcomes the new Turkish law for the Protection of the Family and Prevention of Violence against Women. The Embassy is supporting the work of the Family and Social Policy Ministry to implement the legislation to combat domestic violence, through training at the local level.

We hope the stories on our website will help raise awareness of what still needs to be done to tackle violence against women.

About Leigh Turner

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of…

I hope you find this blog interesting and, where appropriate, entertaining. My role in Vienna covers the relationship between Austria and the UK as well as the diverse work of the UN and other organisations; stories here will reflect that.

About me: I arrived in Vienna in August 2016 for my second posting in this wonderful city, having first served here in the mid-1980s. My previous job was as HM Consul-General and Director-General for Trade and Investment for Turkey, Central Asia and South Caucasus based in Istanbul.

Further back: I grew up in Nigeria, Exeter, Lesotho, Swaziland and Manchester before attending Cambridge University 1976-79. I worked in several government departments before joining the Foreign Office in 1983.

Keen to go to Africa and South America, I’ve had postings in Vienna (twice), Moscow, Bonn, Berlin, Kyiv and Istanbul, plus jobs in London ranging from the EU Budget to the British Overseas Territories.

2002-6 I was lucky enough to spend four years in Berlin running the house, looking after the children (born 1992 and 1994) and doing some writing and journalism.

To return to Vienna as ambassador is a privilege and a pleasure. I hope this blog reflects that.

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