BHCT chair speaks out

October 4, 2006

Dear Sir,

As chairman of the Bermuda Hospitals Charitable Trust (BHCT) I am dismayed by the tone of the debate concerning the location of our new hospital. Issuing ultimatums regarding support for this important initiative is offensive and inexcusable, reflecting a level of partisanship which is problematic in a community of our size. While the subject of the debate should be taken seriously, it is by no mean the most important issue. That issue is the delivery of a first class affordable healthcare system for Bermuda ? work which must begin soon.

Our current hospital has, in my view five to six years of remaining life. The energy focused on location is misdirected and counter productive ? we must have a sense of urgency for the planning, funding and construction of a new hospital.

All persons are entitled to their opinion, however I believe there has been a rush to judgment without the benefit of full and complete information. I urge the Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) to act quickly to provide this information so that everyone can make an informed judgment. This approach will reduce the emotive level of the current debate and allow us to carefully and sensibly consider our choices. It is my sincere hope that all of us will keep our focus on the primary issue ? healthcare!

As I have stated previously, the BHCT was formed solely to assist the BHB in the raising of funds for the construction of the new hospital. We also expect to provide financial oversight and support to the BHB to ensure Bermuda that all monies raised are spent wisely. This support has been welcomed by the BHB because, like us, they have recognised that the good we can accomplish working together is far greater than that we would do individually.

I acknowledge that Kit Astwood and several others have written to me detailing their objections to the location of the new hospital. As reported in his interview, Mr. Astwood misrepresented my role and influence over the location of the new hospital. Mr. Astwood is an advisor, one of many, and not a Trustee of the BHCT as such, his perspective will be considered along with those of all our advisory committee members. As Chairman of the BHCT my responsibility is to lead in the best interest of all Bermudians. In a country of 21 square miles we are not blessed with multiple options ? any choice we make will be challenging. In the final analysis, I would hope that we will resolve the issue of location in an expeditious, fair and respectful manner so that we can get on with the real work of building an institution which all Bermudians can afford, support, utilise and celebrate.

Look deeper at hate flyers

October 5, 2006

Dear Sir,

In no way do I condone leaving threatening leaflets on the cars of our foreign workers and frankly as an expat myself it makes me feel slightly uncomfortable. However, before we write this off as some sort of xenophobic hate crime it is worth looking a little deeper. Having lived and worked with Bermudians for many years and knowing them to be gracious and welcoming hosts to the foreign workforce, this act seems to be totally out of character. Obviously the vast, vast majority of Bermudians would not dream of committing such an act but the fact that some, or at least one has, I believe indicates that there is a lot of pain in our community, there are a lot of people hurting out there.

We are in a situation where a substantial number of people have to pay the greater part of their salary just to keep a roof over their heads and an increasing number cannot even manage to achieve that as shown by the number of people living at the old Club Med. Even if people can afford the sky high rents, there is evidence that some landlords prefer to rent to foreigners than Bermudians, even at the lower end of the market. Perhaps three expats sharing a property appears to landlords to be a better bet for getting the rent paid than one, single-parent Bermudian. Who knows what the reasons are, but I am hearing an increasing number of instances of Bermudians failing to secure rental properties because landlords preferred foreigners brought in to do unskilled and semi-skilled jobs.

The jobs themselves are another issue. In the past Bermudians had the option of taking a second or third job in hospitality to make ends meet. However, now that Bermudians need those jobs they are not available, either due to a decrease in the number of hospitality jobs or because the ones that do exist are filled by foreigners. The combination of these two factors is making life very uncomfortable for an increasing number of Bermudians which has led to the level of frustration and pain currently being witnessed.

I believe though that the leaflet sticker is aiming at the wrong target in ?Ace and XL employees?. Exempted companies account for only 1,500 of the 9,000 work permits in issue and the vast majority of those are professional or technical positions for which there are simply not enough qualified Bermudians. One can ask whether enough Bermudian are being trained by these companies or look at the inflationary impact housing allowances paid by exempted companies have on property rental prices. However, much more fertile ground for improving the lot of working class Bermudians may come from examining the 7,500 work permits issued to local companies.

Perhaps it is time for Government to restrict the number of work permits that local businesses can have to a percentage of their total workforce. This would reduce the number of foreign workers and give an incentive to hire and train Bermudians. Obviously other measures would have to be taken to get the same amount of work done with fewer employees. These may include more overtime or Bermudians and expats working second jobs. The crux of the matter is that there just isn?t enough space on the rock for the number of people who are currently living on it and the sooner we do something about that the better things will be. If we ignore the warning signs of the pain that is being felt in our community we will all surely suffer for it.

Advice from US consulate

October 4, 2006

Dear Sir,

Several changes in US government regulations will soon affect many travellers going to the US from Bermuda. The US Consulate General in Hamilton is engaging in a large outreach effort to ensure that all travellers ? American, Bermudian, and others ? are prepared.

The key concerns affecting most travellers flying from Bermuda are as follows:

1. As of January 8, 2007, all travellers flying from Bermuda to the United States ? US citizens, Bermudians, Canadians and others ? must present a passport. Machine-readable passports are preferred; however, Americans, Bermudians, and Canadians with valid passports that are not machine-readable may continue to use those passports until they expire. ?Air travel? includes commercial flights, charter flights, private planes and corporate planes.

2. Bermudians and others who did not previously require US visas (e.g. Canadians, UK citizens) will not be required to obtain visas. British citizens travelling on British passports do not require a visa for most short trips, but must have a machine-readable passport.

If a traveller is in doubt as to whether a visa is required, he or she should consult our website at http://hamilton.usconsulate.gov.

3. Travellers who do need visas and wish to apply at the US Consulate in Hamilton are required to complete an application on-line. As of October 15, 2006, the Consulate will not accept handwritten or typed application forms.

Visa applicants may access the forms at http://evisaforms.state.gov from their personal internet accounts or from public terminals, such as libraries or internet cafes. A link to this site will be available on the Consulate?s website as well. Forms should be completed on-line, then printed out and brought to the Consulate. Applicants will still be required to appear in person to pay the necessary fees and have finger scans taken. I would like to invite all your readers to visit our website, http://hamilton.usconsulate.gov for further information and news of interest to Bermudians.

Don?t deprive us

September 23, 2006

Dear Sir,

Those in authority, or are a part of the establishment, must not only recognise, but must be prepared to tolerate those who comment on our racial diversity and disparity. The Chairman of the Hospital Board has been commended a number of times for the patience and courtesy that he has exhibited in the emotional and often rude discussions on the location of the Hospital. It was, therefore, all the more unfortunate that he chose to cut short (a black person, of course) someone who wished to comment on the racial aspect that had emerged on the talk shows. When 90 percent of one race attends an event there is likely to be a racial component!

The Chairman need not have been so defensive because the Hospitals Board was not being held responsible for the 90 percent of whites who attended nor for all of those blacks who stayed away. He was, however, responsible for the intolerance he showed towards the speaker who, in fact, spoke no longer than others whose lengthy comments he permitted. In fact he was so disturbed that he completely overlooked the fact that the speaker began with a question: ?Does it mean that forty years from now when this Hospital becomes obsolete we will then use the rest of the Botanical Gardens?? In silencing the speaker he abruptly asked, ?Do you have a question?? As if to merely make a comment was unacceptable when he had continually asked for both questions and comments and others had simply made comments without being in any way rebuked.

Those blacks who are in a position of authority or representative of the Government in any way must stop being intimidated by the white presence from even talking about, or just listening to, comments about race. In fact the Hospitals Board should have had a major responsibility finding out: ?Why this racial difference is expressed interest concerning the location of the hospital?? Whether we talk about it or not, racial differences are not going away if we do not talk about it. Since I could not do it at the meeting let me suggest reasons for the difference and the consequent racial hostility which emerged in the talk shows, even from those in the black community who want to save the Gardens.

If there were meetings on ?stocks and bonds?, there would no doubt be a similar disparity in attendance for the same reason. We live in a society which has ensured that a large percentage of the black community never acquires sufficient discretionary funds to make it worth their while to learn about ?stocks and bonds?. In the same way they have been denied space and forced to live in crowded and congested conditions so that they have n ever learned to appreciate ?space? just as they have never learned the value of investments.

However, in my view, it is this Government?s responsibility to both encourage them to save and to learn about investments (and to ensure that they have the discretionary funds to do so) and also to learn about the relief that comes from appreciating open spaces. It should not be a situation where this Government deprives them of even the little space that they might enjoy. I realise that it is probably not irrelevant that both the Cabinet and the Hospitals Board come out of the black community and often reflect its values. But most of them have now put themselves in a position where they do have space and are not living in congested quarters. But they need to recognise that that is not true for a vast majority of the black community whom they are supposed to represent. So teach them the value of appreciating the Botanical Gardens rather than depriving them of it.

EVA N. HODGSON

Crawl

Use our imaginations

September 22, 2006

Dear Sir,

A letter addressed to you published on September 16, from a Southampton Sceptic is so much to the point that it could be published again. I hope to add to its contents. Why the sudden rush to build, or worse still to destroy what we have that has been very recently. Upgraded? The Alfred Barber wing compares with any I have seen in hospitals considered to be among the best in North America. The new day care rehab section, even with its staff restrictions, is equal to those that I have personally seen and evaluated in New Jersey and Boston, Massachusetts.

As Sceptic says why not start by tearing down the old wing, where the Department of Education was located, (before it falls down) I went in an around it recently on several occasions and observed it to be derelict and occupying a large wasted space. The large car park in front and to the side of it, could offer almost as much floor space as the existing new hospital, combined. I have been in and around and through the famous Leahy clinic, Beth Israel Medical Centre and am knowledgeable of Johns Hopkins.

I could name other prestigious and medical centres. All have one thing in common (other than medical prominence), their buildings have been added to considerably but the Old part which was still sound, was kept and modified as the new wings were developed, much as spokes on a wheel. The parking problem is only one of existing unimaginative land uses. The jam up used for parking between Berry Hill road and the new hospital could easily be three levels with entrance directly from the Berry Hill level rather than down the small entrance that should be for emergency and service vehicles only.

In conclusion I would suggest the designers and proponents of the present scheme visit some these great institutions and see how they have reused and preserved buildings almost three times as old as our so called new hospital which is about to be replaced.

Jerry Rawlings, rights abuser

October 2, 2006

Dear Sir,

The recently concluded African Diaspora Heritage Trail Conference is a small, yet important part of our overall tourism marketing strategy. Educating others about the richness of our African ancestry and the integration of the cultures can only help to lead to greater diversity and understanding. That is a good thing. It is unfortunate therefore that some of the gloss of the Conference was dulled by the so-called big guns who were brought in to promote it. Firstly, we have actor Danny Glover, the Conference Chairman, who barely a week ago ?high fived? and hugged Venezuelan president Chavez and called him a ?visionary?. This was after president Chavez had called Glover?s own president a ?devil? and made many other denigrating remarks about president Bush during his now infamous vitriolic UN address. One wonders whether Glover was aware of the ongoing Amnesty International investigations into human rights abuses in Venezuela before complimenting the regime?s leader as visionary.

Secondly, we have ex-president of Ghana, Jerry John Rawlings making his views known on colonialism and other vestiges of that era. It is ironic that one of Rawlings? opponents in his country accused him of forcing Ghana to become a colony during his period as president of Ghana as a result of his economic policies. Bermudians, on listening to Rawlings address at the Conference probably didn?t realise that he led a military coup that overthrew an elected Government in Ghana in 1981. He relished in his country?s rich ?Gold Coast? history but his regime was criticised for many human rights abuses, the imprisonment of journalists and authoritarian rule. During the first 11 years of his coup, Human Rights Watch reported that there was regular interference between the executive branch of government and the judiciary. During his so called ?people?s revolution,? human rights violations increased and an accused?s rights to fair judicial hearings were regularly abused. The full human rights report can be found at www.hrw.org/reports/pdfs/g/ghana/ghana921.pdf.

In 1998 while Rawlings was still President, no fewer than 35 Amnesty International groups were present in Ghana campaigning for the freedom of prisoners of conscience. Even a 1995 US Department of State report on Ghana found instances of human rights abuses. While the recently concluded Conference advocated an ?integration of ideas?, we Bermudians need to be astute enough to distinguish between the rhetoric of the message and the message itself and be prepared to question the messengers.