tourism official warned yesterday.

Mr. James Rizzo, head of tourism in Malta, said locals allowed into a gambling complex blew their family fortunes and destroyed their marriages.

And he denied that a casino would bring tourism benefits to Bermuda.

Mr. Rizzo was speaking at the second Island Tourism International Forum at Bermuda College yesterday. On Monday the conference heard cruise line executive Mr. Robert Sturges praise casinos as a way to attract American visitors.

But Mr. Rizzo said: "Casinos or gambling or gaming, unless adequately controlled by the government, can disrupt the social fabric of a nation.'' He said Malta's casino arrived in the 1960s, open to anyone in a tuxedo. In the 1970s, after family problems, the government restricted entry to those showing a foreign passport.

In 1987, he said, the government again "threw the doors open'' to anyone who wanted to go in.

Malta, a Mediterranean nation which depends heavily on tourism, has 350,000 residents on its two islands. It is about 10 times the size of Bermuda.

Mr. Rizzo told The Royal Gazette : "In my personal view, I don't consider that a casino gives any benefit to an island destination. There is nothing to be gained out of it.

"Certainly, tourists are not going to visit a beautiful island like Bermuda because it has a casino.

"Maybe it's an added attraction while you are here, but then the government must weigh the pros and cons.

"Is there going to be a sufficient return for the amount of money that is changing hands? "Who's going to make the money in the long term -- is it the investors or is there sufficient benefit for the government? "The environment of a casino leads to uncontrolled gambling. It can ruin the social fabric of an island, especially if it's a new project. If there's control from the very beginning and local inhabitants are not allowed in, perhaps the situation is not as critical.

"If there is not, there's a chance that one has to learn by mistakes, and it's very difficult to correct mistakes when the family wealth has gone down the drain.'' Malta's casino did less social damage when it was opened to locals a second time, he said.

"But I know of cases of families that have ruined their family wealth in gambling. If there wasn't a casino this wouldn't have happened.

"It's a case study one should look at.'' GAMBLING GAM