    richard william butler ac (born 13 may 1942) has served as an australian public servant, a united nations weapons inspector and the governor of tasmania. ==life and career== butler was born in coolah in rural new south wales. he grew up in sydney and was educated at randwick boys high school, the university of sydney and the australian national university, canberra. he married susan ryan in 1963 and they had a son and a daughter; they divorced in 1972. he joined the australian department of foreign affairs in 1965, and served in a number of postings until 1975, when he resigned to become principal private secretary to the leader of the opposition, gough whitlam, who had recently been dismissed as prime minister. in 1983 the next australian labor party prime minister, bob hawke, appointed him as australia's permanent representative on disarmament to the united nations in geneva. he was next appointed australian ambassador to thailand, and played a major part in the cambodian peace settlement, working closely with then foreign minister gareth evans. he was australian ambassador to the united nations from 1992 to 1997. his term was ended by the new foreign minister alexander downer, after butler's intensive lobbying had failed to win australia a seat on the security council in 1996 (she was beaten by sweden and portugal). in his 2000 memoir the greatest threat, butler acknowledged that his "high-energy, high-visibility activities ... had served as a distraction and clearly alienated some nations whose votes we might otherwi
1942_births Ambassadors_of_Australia_to_Thailand Australian_National_University_alumni Australian_diplomats Australian_republicans Companions_of_the_Order_of_Australia Governors_of_Tasmania Living_people Permanent_Representatives_of_Australia_to_the_United_Nations University_of_Sydney_alumni