to save the lives of Bermudians is nothing short of repugnant. The idea that a group which claims to preach the gospel also marches preaching hate was bad enough but the spectacle of otherwise decent people trying to sabotage a highly respectable and life saving charity was nothing short of disgusting.

We had hoped that the Christian Coalition had simply made a mistake or had suffered from an excess of zeal when it attacked the Allan Vincent Smith Foundation, Bermuda's premier AIDS awareness group. But the attack now appears to have been carefully carried out. Surely that action destroys any credibility the Christian Coalition might have had. Clearly this is a group of fanatics which will stop at nothing. Bermuda should be very concerned about where and on whom they will turn next.

It is perfectly correct for every person in Bermuda to wonder just how far the Christian Coalition will go in its opposition to gay rights. It is easy for everyone to see that Bermuda's gay population has behaved well and with great restraint in the face of almost hysterical and unprovoked abuse from these fundamentalist Christians. Having your say, making your point and freely expressing your views is one thing, but provoking hatred is something totally different. There must be people inside the Christian Coalition whose stomachs are turned by the prejudice and hatred as the group marches to persecute other Bermudians.

As the Hon. Quinton Edness has been quoted as saying: "It is a darker side of humanity when an organisation has to malign another organisation which is doing so much good in the community.'' To its credit, the deeply humanistic and constructive Salvation Army has finally moved to sever its link with the anti-gay Christian Coalition. Other denominations might be wise to do the same. However, there should be no doubt that the Salvation Army is not reformed, it is on record as an openly homophobic denomination. We do not know if the local Salvation Army moved away from the Christian Coalition only after orders from its headquarters in Toronto but that would certainly seem to be the case. The mess the Salvation Army found itself in is indicative of just how destructive preaching hatred can be.

Now it seems that gay rights will finally be debated in the House of Assembly on Friday. Bermuda has delayed a relatively minor decision for far too long.

To say no to human rights for gays would be to brand Bermuda as a very odd country in the international community. Parliamentarians know what is right and just.