Whanganui disability advocate Sir Robert Martin was knighted and re-elected to the United Nations Committee of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities this year.
Photo / Bevan Conley
Whanganui disability advocate Sir Robert Martin was knighted and re-elected to the United Nations Committee of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities this year.
Photo / Bevan Conley
Today we begin our Whanganui Chronicle Person of the Year series.
Last month we put the call out to our readers for nominations and from an impressive pool we've chosen four runners-up and a winner. The runners-up will be profiled between Monday and Thursday with the winnerto be revealed on Saturday.
The first of four runners-up needs no introduction, having earned New Zealand's highest honour earlier in the year, writes Liz Wylie.
In 2020 Sir Robert Martin was named a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (KNZM) and re-elected to the United Nations Committee of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
And just last week Whanganui District Council hosted a morning tea celebration for Martin after a planned observance was cancelled in April due to Covid-19 restrictions.
His friend Paddy Rauhihi came from Marton to join the celebration and presented him with a pounamu pendant.
"I know you lost your other one so I've brought you a new one," she said.
Martin said it was friends like Rauhihi who have given him the drive and ambition to continue his advocacy work.
"I would like to acknowledge all the people with learning disabilities from this region," he said.
"They have been part of my journey and their friendships have supported me over the years."
"We've learned together and fought together - this is our journey."
Living in Whanganui has given him a supportive environment, Martin said.
"I've been lucky having the assistance of people in this community over the years.
"The people at Community House have been so supportive and good to me."
Martin works from his desk in Community House as a People First advocate and adviser.
People First is a self-advocacy organisation that is led and directed by people with learning disabilities which Sir Robert helped found in New Zealand in the 1980s.
Sir Robert Martin shares a laugh with Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall at a ceremony held in his honour at the council chambers last week.
Photo / Bevan Conley
Playing and coaching sport in Whanganui has been another aspect of the community that he really enjoys, he said.
"That is something that really helps me unwind and I really enjoy the interactions I have with people through sport."
Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall said Sir Robert's work was "extraordinary and his work utterly changes lives".
"To have a person like Sir Robert who enables others to lead enriched lives in our community is a great honour," he said.
It was Dame Tariana Turia who nominated Martin for his UN role when she was Minister for Disability Issues and she travelled to New York with him in 2014.
A number of Martin's long-time friends attended his morning tea celebration in the Whanganui District Council chambers and spoke about how proud they were of his achievements.
In 2014, Martin published his biographical book 'Becoming a Person'.
Written by John McRae it describes his transition from life in New Zealand institutions to becoming an international advocate for people with disabilities.
Now he faces the challenges of doing his UN committee work under Covid-19 restrictions and may have to spend more time staying up at night to conduct his work via Zoom meetings.
The upside may be that he spends more time at home in Whanganui with his wife Lynda, who he credits as being his first and best support during almost 30 years of overseas travel doing advocacy work.
