last night, promising to build more recreational facilities if he remains Premier after Tuesday's referendum.

Sir John, who has pledged to resign in the event of a `no' vote, blamed others in his United Bermuda Party Government for a lack of things for young people to do.

"I'm going to reprioritise the Government if I am (still) the Premier,'' Sir John told the first-ever Independence rally organised by the Coalition for the Independence of Bermuda.

"I'm going to reprioritise and get some things done to make sure our people have those recreational facilities.

"I know what I've been doing,'' he told an overflow crowd in the Harbour Room at Number One Shed in Hamilton. "I've been giving in too much to certain elements in my party. That is going to stop.'' He was no longer afraid of losing the position of Premier and only cared about "doing the right things for the right reasons'', he said. Now, "these things will get done''.

At the tail end of an evening featuring nine pro-Independence speakers and a largely pro-Independence crowd of more than 700, Sir John was responding to a question from a woman who wanted to know how Independence would affect the lack of recreational opportunities for young people.

Increasingly in recent days, Sir John and other Cabinet Ministers who have threatened to move from the front benches in the event of a "no'' vote have portrayed themselves as the social conscience of the UBP and predicted a hard swing to the right if they should leave.

The coalition brought together on the same platform Sir John, National Liberal Party Leader Mr. Gilbert Darrell, and lawyer Mr. Philip Perinchief, who is at odds with the Progressive Labour Party over its call for voters to boycott the referendum.

Other speakers included Mrs. Grace Bell MP, Health Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness, Transport Minister the Hon. Maxwell Burgess, journalist Mr. Reggie Semos, lawyer Mr. Peter Smith, and gold medal high jumper Mr. Clarence (Nicky) Saunders.

Committee for the Independence of Bermuda chairman Mr. Walton Brown was on the advertised list of speakers but did not attend. He had another engagement and told The Royal Gazette he never agreed to speak at the forum.

Sir John, Premier since 1982, told the crowd that contrary to the beliefs of many, a `no' vote would do more harm to Bermuda's international business than a `yes' vote would.

Voting yes would "say to the international business community and to the world as a whole that we are confident in ourselves'', the Premier said.

Speakers remarked on the fact the meeting drew not only large numbers of black voters, but many whites as well. Mr. Smith urged the crowd to telephone PLP leaders and tell them to change their minds on the boycott call.

Mr. Perinchief said blacks were told they were not ready for emancipation in 1834. On Independence, "we're being told the same thing by essentially the same kind of thinking people'', he said.

Mrs. Bell said it was "a big, big lie'' for Independence opponents to say they opposed it only at this time. "These people are against Independence now and forever,'' she said.

Mr. Semos noted that he was of Portuguese descent and many more Bermudians were of African descent. In those groups, "none of us...are really tied to Great Britain through blood or affection,'' he said.