yesterday during live television coverage of the cricket Test between West Indies and Australia in Barbados.

But some Bermudians were angered by a defaced Bermuda flag which accompanied the message.

The flag appeared with a large black "X'' through both the Union Jack and the Bermuda Crest.

The flag, along with the pro-Independence message, was seen by millions of cricket fans throughout the Caribbean, as well as in England, Europe, Australia, and parts of Asia and North America.

"I was angry and embarrassed,'' said former Tourism director Mr. Colin Selley, who watched the match locally on Cable 2. "It was an insult to the flag, and an insult to every Bermudian.'' Mr. Selley said the display was "in bad taste'', and hurtful to Bermuda's image. "I worked 34 years in Tourism trying to promote Bermuda,'' he said.

While he could not see who was with the sign, Mr. Selley questioned whether Bermuda had laws against desecrating the flag, as some countries did.

He noted that independent Australia -- who won the first Test - proudly displayed the Union Jack as part of its flag.