Businessman Mr. Martin Smith was there.

Mr. Smith, who served in the Royal Air Forces in Burma during the closing days of the war, told The Royal Gazette: "I know the horrors of war first-hand. A vivid picture in my mind is seeing a New Zealand prisoner-of-war being beheaded by a Japanese officer with a samurai sword.'' He said he also flew in Europe, but conditions in southeast Asia were much worse.

It was ironic that the date for the Referendum coincided with the day which marked the Victory in Japan (VJ) Day's 50th anniversary, said Mr. Smith.

"The Japanese -- like the Germans in Europe -- devastated the area and made the population subservient,'' he said. "There was little physical damage but the political and physical infrastructure were destroyed. The people could feed themselves, but that was it.'' Mr. Smith said: "After seeing the way the Japanese and Germans took control and decided what they were going to do with everybody and everything -- they took away all freedoms and property -- it is similar to what Government is doing at the moment.'' Referring to the Independence controversy, he added: "We need to go back to the grass roots of the country and find people who will listen to their constituents and represent their interests. They must have the intelligence to put a programme together for everybody.'' "Bermuda has social and economic problems to be dealt with before we can consider this (Independence),'' he said. "We must do things for the good of the community and cannot be selfish. We must give back to the community so it can be successful.

"We must have respect for our fellow man and we must be individuals of strong character and be able to accept the responsibility for our actions. this is not going to be accomplished by going Independent.'' "Bermudians have got their knickers twisted about this and it could lead to the same things I saw 50 years ago.'' Mr. Smith warned.