Bermudian this week voiced his disgust with Government.

"We, the 11 percent of the electorate, have been betrayed by the UBP,'' Mr.

Michael Medeiros said in a full-page advertisement that appeared in The Royal Gazette .

Mr. Medeiros, vice-chairman of the 2,500-member Portuguese Bermudian Organisation, said the ad was the first salvo in a "media blitz''.

"The John Swan Government has continued to treat the Portuguese people in Bermuda with such disregard that they consider us an invisible community,'' Mr. Medeiros said. "We will no longer accept being an invisible community.'' Mr. Medeiros said the ad was funded by a non-Bermudian donor who wished to remain anonymous and was not formally approved by the PBO. But he felt it reflected the views of the group.

However, Miss Anna Faria, chairman of the PBO, said yesterday the ad reflected the personal opinion of Mr. Medeiros and had "nothing to do with us''.

Asked if Mr. Medeiros was the PBO's vice-chairman, she said: "At present, yes he is.'' Mr. Medeiros had especially harsh words for United Bermuda Party MP Mr. Trevor Moniz, whom he said used the issue of security for long-term residents to win election.

Since then, "I haven't heard anything from him,'' Mr. Medeiros said.

"Unfortunately, Mr. Trevor Moniz forgets quite quickly that it was the Portuguese Bermudians who pushed him into the House of Assembly when he was running against Grant Gibbons'' in a UBP primary.

Mr. Moniz rejected the charges from Mr. Medeiros.

First, it was "the voters of Smith's South'' who elected him. Secondly, he had continued to meet with Mr. Medeiros and others from his group since the election. And he encouraged the Portuguese Bermudian group to come to him for free political or legal advice, he said.

While he had not raised the issue in the House of Assembly, he said he had discussed it frequently with Labour and Home Affairs Minister the Hon. Irving Pearman.

Mr. Moniz said he understood Mr. Pearman's dilemma during tough economic times, but was "disappointed'' the Minister had not done more for long-time residents.

Mr. Medeiros said the status of long-term residents would be an issue in the upcoming UBP primary and by-election in Paget East. Portuguese residents would be encouraged to vote not along party lines, but for the candidate who best reflected their views.

In Paget East, "we don't see ourselves supporting any UBP member. For any upcoming primaries and upcoming elections, they're going to have very little support,'' he said.

Mr. Medeiros said his organisation was concerned about 362 persons -- not all of them Portuguese -- who had lived in Bermuda more than 20 years but had no security on the Island. They were not necessarily seeking Bermudian status, but "at least some stability''. Many of them had children born in Bermuda who were not considered Bermudian, he added.

The Portuguese Bermudian Organisation was formed when large numbers of Portuguese lost their work permits during the recession and were forced to leave the Island.

The group had "presented Government with the facts and figures,'' but "there has been little or no progress'', he said. "Government is just using a stalling technique.''