My friend Rob Bennett, who has died of muscular dystrophy at the age of 60, was a peace campaigner, human rights activist and civil servant. Born and brought up in Hampstead, north London, he was the fourth and youngest child of Richard and Margo Bennett, both writers and peace activists who had met in 1936 in Barcelona, where they were engaged in the struggle against Franco.
Rob was educated at Quintin Kynaston school, St John's Wood, and the University of East Anglia, graduating in 1973 in economics and politics. He then trained in careers guidance at Birmingham Polytechnic and went on to join the Department of Employment. He later transferred to the Race Relations Employment Advisory Service, which merged in 2001 with the arbitration service Acas, where he worked as a conciliator in workplace disputes until retiring in 2010.
For many years Rob worked tirelessly for CND and Amnesty International. In the 1980s he was secretary of Hampstead CND. After moving to west London in 1990, he joined Hounslow and then Acton CND and became the co-ordinator for Hammersmith Amnesty. He was a familiar figure in both locations, pedalling the streets in all weathers with bicycle panniers bulging with leaflets.
Rob spoke out in the local and national press against the cost of maintaining and updating nuclear weapons "when crucial social issues such as homelessness, healthcare, education and public transport remain desperately under-funded". He also wrote articles on peace initiatives, including Peace One Day, which calls for a worldwide ceasefire on 21 September each year, and on human rights, campaigning for asylum seekers and dissidents.
As a member of Amnesty, he was actively involved in the campaign to set up the International Criminal Court, lamenting the position that "for far too long in western civilisation, if you kill one person you are tried, but if you kill many thousands, you are not".
Rob devoted all his energy to his causes, manning stalls in all weathers until illness finally forced him to stop. He lived life to the full, always finding the time to spare for anyone ill or distressed, and he fought to secure improved facilities for the disabled.
He is survived by his sister, Caroline.