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Robert Martin (b. 1957) is a disability rights activist who has promoted the self advocacy movement internationally and was involved in the proceedings resulting in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. He is a candidate for election to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities for the 2017-2020 term.

Early Life
Robert was born in Whanganui, New Zealand. A difficult birth resulted in a brain injury. As a baby he was sent to Kimberley Mental Deficiency Colony (later renamed the Kimberley Centre). Apart from brief periods living with his family and a failed attempt at fostering, Robert spent his childhood in institutions as a ward of the state. These institutions included Lake Alice Hospital (a psychiatric hospital) and Campbell Park School. In his biography, Robert describes inhumane conditions and abuse in these institutions which he would later campaign to close.

Career
In 1972 Robert was released from care and returned to Whanganui. For a short while he lived with his parents but the relationship was characterised by violence and unhappiness. Over several years Robert lived and worked in the care of IHC, the pre-eminent advocacy and care organisation for people with intellectual disabilities in New Zealand. During this period Robert began educating himself, often through books he stole. He became involved in activities to break down barriers for people with learning disabilities, including protests and non co-operation with carers. He organised a strike of intellectually disabled farm-workers. By the time he was in his mid-twenties Robert was playing a leading role in the disability activist group People First. He held office at regional and national level and in 1993 traveled to Canada to represent New Zealand at a People First conference. Shortly after this Robert participated in the writing of "The Beliefs, Values, and Principles of Self-Advocacy." In the mid-nineties Robert was appointed to the staff of IHC as a traveling advocate in New Zealand. His role was to promote self-advocacy among people with disabilities and to build public understanding that would enable the movement of people with intellectual disabilities from institutions into the community. Robert also traveled overseas extensively for Inclusion International promoting self advocacy. He became a council member of Inclusion International and in 2003 was appointed Inclusion International’s representative on the United Nations Ad Hoc Committee "to consider proposals for a comprehensive and integral international convention to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities." For a period Robert was the only person with a learning disability involved in the UN proceedings. Nevertheless his influence was felt in discussions around the status of families (Preamble X of the Convention) and the right of people with disabilities to live in the community.(Article 19.) A biography of Robert was published in 2014. Vidcam (talk) 01:11, 19 February 2015 (UTC)