event in Bermuda to race and turn it into a political issue are becoming more and more evident. There is very little in any society more divisive than a cry of race and if the intent is to divide Bermudians it will probably succeed because there is no issue about which Bermudians are more sensitive.

Racism should certainly be exposed where it exists but to claim race at every turn and to use claims of racism to mask other shortcomings, especially personal shortcomings, is counterproductive. It is counterproductive to a well-balanced society but it is also counterproductive to ridding ourselves of racism because unfounded claims demean the real problems we should be solving.

Historically racism certainly played a major role in hampering the rise of blacks in Bermuda. It is still true today in more subtle ways than it used to be and must not be tolerated. However, today racism tends to be isolated rather than generally sanctioned.

We doubt if there are very many outright racist situations where someone decides: "He's talented but he's black, therefore we will not hire him or promote him.'' Yet there are black Bermudians who believe that such situations are the norm. There are white Bermudians who believe they are hard done by because they are kept back in a rush to be politically correct and both hire and promote blacks.

Then too there is a tendency for individuals to blame racism for their problems because it is the easy way to cover personal shortcomings.

Politicians make matters more complicated by claiming racism in order to politicise every situation, hoping, of course, for some political advantage.

There is a huge temptation to politicise race in Bermuda because our basic life is so good there is little else to complain about but basing politics on race has a counterproductive result.

We do not believe that changes in the Police Service are motivated by racial considerations. They are motivated by the need to improve the Police Service and by the desire of Bermudians to have a safe and secure society. Over the years, for a multitude of reasons, the quality of policing declined at a time when drugs and attendant crimes were on the increase. Bermudians of all political stripes were complaining, especially the Progressive Labour Party.

Having earlier claimed that Bermuda was "over-policed'', the PLP saw crime as a stick with which to beat the Government. Now the PLP is crying race because the Police Service is being restructured. Yet they do not seem to see a contradiction.

Clearly the way to deal with drugs and crime is to have a more effective Police Service. It is healthy to take a hard look every so often at any large organisation and to "clean house''. Personnel changes will result from any restructuring and we do not think those in the Police Service are racially motivated.

The criticisms of changes seem to suggest that the senior Policemen being removed are simply being pushed out. The criticism does not recognise that they will receive several hundred thousand dollars in severance pay and a pension for life of around $60,000 per year. Police officers can retire on pensions at 55 when the Bermudian norm is 65.

The Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Quinton Edness is correct when he says: "If you compromise, you might as well throw up your hands and go back to an inefficient service which is not able to cope with crime in this community.

This has to be done and if you stand firm and treat people fairly then we will have the kind of Police Service which will contain crime.'' That's what Bermudians want.