Strong Voices

Heartfelt tributes from the disability community flowed following the news that Sir Robert Martin, a lifetime champion for people with intellectual disabilities, had died in Whanganui in May.

Sir Robert was the first New Zealander with an intellectual disability to be knighted. In 2017 he became the first person with an intellectual disability to be elected to a United Nations Human Rights Treaty Body and, in 2018, the first to chair a meeting within a UN session.

His achievements were recognised in the 2008 New Year Honours when he was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit and again in 2020 when he was promoted to Knight Companion.

Sir Robert, who had a brain injury at birth, was involved with the self-advocacy movement for people with learning disabilities for more than 30 years. He was a Life Member of People First New Zealand Ng? T?ngata Tuatahi, their national organisation. He also held roles with Inclusion International and was National Self Advocacy Advisor and Trainer for IHC New Zealand between 1991 and 2010.

IHC Chief Executive Ralph Jones says that Sir Robert’s contribution to the community was unequalled.

“I have known Sir Robert for many years and his achievements were remarkable. We served together for many years on the Council of Inclusion International. He made a real difference to the lives of people with disabilities both in New Zealand and overseas. It’s an incredible legacy.”

Sir Robert’s early years were spent in institutional care and he later said that he felt the presence of the people he lived with in some of New Zealand’s grimmest institutions. In November 2019 he gave evidence to the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care about his own experiences of abuse and how he was made to feel he was nobody.

His biography, Becoming a Person, was published in 2014. Written by John McRae, it describes Sir Robert’s transition from life in New Zealand institutions to becoming an international advocate for people with disabilities.

John says he and Sir Robert became good friends during the 10 years it took to write the book. “It was a good 10 years of seeing each other and talking and going places. He was always very gracious. He was the loveliest man. I learned an enormous amount from Robert about who we are – about what it is like to be a human being,” he says. “Despite the fact of him having a very difficult early life, where he felt alone and unloved, Robert was later able to overcome that and become a friend to many people.”

There were tributes from many of Sir Robert’s People First friends and colleagues. IHC Self-Advocacy Advisor David Corner said he was lucky to have had the opportunity to spend lots of time with Sir Robert over the years. “He has been a really great mentor to me as well as a worldwide leader and an inspiration for People with learning/intellectual disability. He will be looking down on us, watching us carry on with the good work that he has started.”

People First National Manager Cindy Johns said they were mourning the loss of a great leader of People First members and others with a learning disability in New Zealand and around the world. “He made history. We also believe he is the only the only person with a learning disability in the world to be knighted. His legacy will live on as we continue to keep speaking up for the rights of all disabled people globally.”

Sir Robert is survived by his wife Lynda.

Above: Sir Robert and Lady Lynda Martin at the Whanganui District Council ceremony that celebrated his knighthood and re-election to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in December 2020. Photo: Whanganui Chronicle / NZME