Peter Wilenski

Peter Stephen Wilenski, AC (10 May 1939 – 3 November 1994) was a senior Australian public servant and ambassador. He was a champion of women's rights and equal opportunity.

Peter Wilenski AC
Wilenski in 1975
Secretary of the Department of Labor and Immigration
In office 31 March 1975 – 22 December 1975
Secretary of the Department of Education and Youth Affairs
In office 25 March 1983 – 1 November 1983
Secretary of the Department of Transport and Communications
In office 24 Jul 1987 – 30 September 1988
Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
In office 15 February 1992 – 14 May 1993
Personal details
Born	Peter Stephen Wilenski 10 May 1939 Łódź, Poland
Died	3 November 1994(1994-11-03) (aged 55) Sydney, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Spouse(s)	Gail Radford Jill Hager
Children	2
Alma mater	University of Sydney University of Oxford
Occupation	Public servant

Early life

Peter Wilenski was born in Łódź, Poland on 10 May 1939.^[1][2] He came to Australia in 1943 as a Jewish refugee, due to World War II conflict and persecution of Jewish people in his home country.^[3] His family spent time in a Soviet internment camp before coming to Australia.^[4] For high school education, he attended Sydney Boys High School.^[4] He later studied at the University of Sydney where he met his first wife, Gail Radford, when both were student politicians.^[5]

Career

Wilenski entered the Australian Public Service as a Foreign Affairs Officer (1967–71).^[1]

Wilenski's first Secretary role was in the Department of Labor and Immigration, appointed by the Whitlam government in March 1975 fresh from a position as private secretary to Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.^[6] Just months after his appointment, the federal opposition were promising to sack Wilenski when they were back in power.^[7] During the 1970s Wilenski was working for the United States of America in what a historian has called "a discreet relationship".^[8]

In March 1983 Wilenski was placed in his second Secretary role, this time as head of the Department of Education and Youth Affairs. His tenure at the department was seven months.^[9]

Wilenski was appointed Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 1992, but retired from the position in 1993 due to ill health.^[4][10]

Awards

In 1994, Wilenski was named a Companion of the Order of Australia for service to international relations and to public sector reform, particularly through fostering the implementation of social justice and equity principles.

Death

Wilenski died on 3 November 1994 at his home in Sydney after battling lymphatic cancer for several years.^[11]