The Big Issue

Peter sells The Big Issue at the corner of Ann and Albert streets in Brisbane.

Many people already know him as Peter, the well-spoken vendor always ready to lend a sympathetic ear and offer some considered advice. But for the many thousands of ham radio operators around the world he is VK4VY. Peter got his radio licence in 1983 and has been connecting with people from Libya to Russia ever since.

“We use Greenwich mean time to arrange to meet on certain frequencies,” says Peter. “And although it’s great chatting to people from other countries, ham radio also has a serious side. We assist with communication during disasters. I spent nine years doing volunteer rescue work over the radio, helping people who are isolated by distance.” In addition to his proficiency with the radio, Peter can also hold a full conversation in morse code.

He credits a visual impairment with giving him the selective hearing skills that make him such a good listener. Peter was born with no vision. When he was six months old, however, an operation restored 5% of his sight. “I really work that 5%,” he jokes. “I identify people by colours and clothing and, of course, voice. “Colour perception is very important when handling money, which is why I don’t work much at night.”

Peter usually works about three days a week, selling The Big Issue to customers who he wants to thank for their “courtesy, generosity and friendliness. The bulk of my sales are to regulars. Occasionally someone gets the wrong idea – maybe it’s the white cane – and tries to give me a donation. But I feel uncomfortable unless I can give them something in return.”

Peter grew up in a family in which both parents were visually impaired. During the 1970s he went to the only school for the blind in Queensland. He remembers one teacher telling him he would always be on the fringes of society. “I laugh at that now, as I live on the outskirts of Brisbane near the bay,” he says.

Sadly, Peter did spend a large part of his life isolated from mainstream society, but not because of his vision. When he was just three years old, his family joined a religious cult founded by an American car salesman. “Since I left, 12 years ago, I have had to rebuild my life,” he says. “Living in such a rigid, authoritarian environment delayed my maturity and I have had to heal from the emotional damage from years of brainwashing and abuse.”

Peter is now confident he has found a path to renewed self-awareness through a technique that promotes the body’s own healing mechanisms. He is studying the technique and hopes to make a career out of it. “I’d like to work alongside other natural therapy practitioners and help people through traumatic events such as war, divorce and bereavement,” he says.

Technology has always played a major role in Peter’s life. He studies online –using voice-recognition software, among other things – and, as he stands to leave, he checks his 25-year-old talking clock. Why? To ensure he’s on time for his next chat with his two-way radio buddies.

by Judy Johnson photograph by Paul Giggle