Geoff Mullen
Geoffrey Richard Mullen (16 March 1947 – 25 November 2014) was an Australian draft resister whose jailing in 1971 became a focal point of opposition to conscription for the Vietnam War.
Mullen was born in
Sydney Morning Herald and the Tribune, and ran in the 1969 federal election as an independent candidate for Wentworth, in opposition to Les Bury, the Minister for Labour and National Service. In February 1971 he was arrested; he refused to plead as a conscientious objector, was sentenced to two years in prison, and served for twelve months. His cause attracted great attention and was championed by left-wing Labor MPs Tom Uren and George Petersen. In prison he completed a post-graduate Bachelor of Literature; after his release he returned to IBM but later became an independent contractor. He retired at the age of sixty and in his later years was noted as a prolific writer of letters to newspapers. Mullen died at St Vincent's Hospital in 2014.[1][2]
References
- ^ Rozycki, Jack (12 January 2015). "Geoff Mullen obituary: prolific man of letters and principles".
- ^ "Mullen's Choice". Australian War Memorial.