The BIC yesterday defended its decision to invite the United Nations Decolonisation Committee (Special Committee of 24, or SC-24) to Bermuda against criticism from the United Bermuda Party.

Eleven members from the SC-24 will be arriving on the Island at the end of this month the BIC said yesterday, to field questions from the public and give information on the road to Independence.

?We don?t need to be afraid of this group,? commissioner David Rowntree, who met with members of the SC-24 on a recent trip to the US, said at a press conference yesterday. ?They are not coming here to shove things down our throat.?

?We would be remiss to not take advantage of their internationally recognised expertise,? Rev. Lambe added in response to comments from Opposition Leader Grant Gibbons deriding the committee?s invitation to the Island earlier in the week.

As for recent articles written on Independence in Bermuda by outside groups such as the Washington-based Council on Hemispheric Affairs and former Caribbean diplomat Sir Ronald Saunders, Rev. Lambe said the BIC is prepared to consider all documents. ?We will be prepared to entertain any submission that comes in,? he said.

?Our concern arises when statements are made that interrupt the process and frustrate the people,? he added.

Commissioner Mike Winfield agreed. ?You get mis-statement made on the basis of a mis-fact and then debate takes place on the basis of that mis-statement. Obviously there is bias, and that is fine ... But one of the most distressing things is the lack of open discussion, the lack of people being able to say tell me about it, let?s talk about it, and then I?ll make a decision.

?It is extraordinary how emotional of a decision this is.?

However Dr. Gibbons was not satisfied yesterday afternoon. ?Bishop Lambe is entitled to his opinion but by definition the Decolonisation Committee is a committee which is set up to move former colonies towards Independence,? he told

?The concern we have is whether we are getting an appropriate balance here regarding the groups being invited to speak.

?As I said before, this is getting to be a little bit like a circus. A group like this coming here really doesn?t help our image internationally.

?It?s not good for international business or in terms of our broader reputation for the world to see we need the UN to come here and sort out our own issues.?

The UN?s involvement was rejected when the country went through the same process in 1995, he added.

In response to a call for UBP involvement in the article written by Sir Ronald, Dr. Gibbons said: ?If Government is prepared to assure people the decision will be made by referendum, I think the UBP could well be involved.?

Whether that involves participation on the BIC itself or not, Dr. Gibbons did not say. ?But we will certainly be involved in the debate.

?Just because we are not a member of the BIC doesn?t mean we don?t feel free to advance our view and be involved in the broader community discussion,? he said.

?Our concern is we are still not convinced this is an appropriate use of Government resources and time, given the other major issues facing the country.?