John Martyr

John Raymond Martyr (25 May 1932 – 18 June 2021) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1975 to 1980 and later served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1981 to 1983, representing the Liberal Party.

Prior to his parliamentary career, Martyr had served as state secretary of the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) from 1964 to 1971 and stood for parliament as a DLP candidate on numerous occasions. He had originally been a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) but was expelled during the 1955 ALP split. He was known for his social conservatism and association with the anti-abortion movement.

Early life Martyr was born in Melbourne on 25 May 1932. He was the first of two sons born to Ellen Mary (née Goodwin) and Ernest John Martyr. His father was from a working-class background and served briefly with the Australian Imperial Force during World War I, later joining the Royal Australian Navy.

Martyr's father died in 1935 when he was three years old. He and his brother were raised by their mother, living in East Brunswick and Caulfield. After leaving school he worked as a sales representative and was a member of the Federated Clerks' Union. He settled in Ferntree Gully where he was active in the local debating society.

Liberal Party In June 1972, it was reported that Martyr and former DLP state president Frank Pownall had left the DLP and defected to the Liberal Party, becoming vice-presidents of the Liberals' Victoria Park branch. He won Liberal preselection for the Division of Swan in January 1975.

Martyr was elected to the House of Representatives at the 1975 federal election, winning Swan from the incumbent ALP member Adrian Bennett. He was narrowly re-elected at the 1977 election before losing his seat to Kim Beazley at the 1980 election.

In 1982, Martyr used parliamentary privilege to name former New South Wales police minister Bill Crabtree, a member of the ALP, as "possibly being involved with NSW police who were allegedly taking illegal gambling bribes".

Political views Martyr was active in the Right to Life Association and regularly spoke against abortion in parliament. In 1980 he unsuccessfully attempted to amend the Fraser government's Human Rights Commission Bill to provide that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights would apply from conception.

Martyr served on the Joint Select Committee into the Family Law Act from 1978 to 1980.