proposal that non-Bermudians working on the Island should better reflect the Island's racial make-up makes a lot of sense.

If non-Bermudians have to be hired, does it make sense from a business or social point of view that they should be mainly white when 70 percent of Bermuda's population is black? The problem becomes even greater in management and professional positions where the vast majority of expatriates are white. If the message being sent to black Bermudians is that only whites -- Bermudian or not -- can hold senior positions then this is certain to breed feelings of inferiority and resentment.

The same argument can be made for women; if the majority of senior positions are held by men, Bermudian or otherwise, then women, white or black, are being told by their employers that they will never make the grade.

On the other hand, if people in professional or management positions reflect the overall population then the message to young Bermudians is unequivocal; people with ability and the desire to work hard can make the grade, regardless of colour or gender. The best message to send is that people will be judged on their merit and on nothing else.

So to some extent, Mr. Lister is right: the current make-up of the non-Bermudian workforce tells Bermudians, and black males in particular, that at best their climb to the top is going to be even longer and more arduous than it is for anyone else.

One way of redressing that is to encourage, or even to force, employers to seek a more diverse workforce.

But Mr. Lister's solution may be too simplistic. Bermuda's companies, both domestic and international, are competing against the world and to succeed, Bermuda needs the best people available. A diverse workforce is a part of that success, but it is not the whole answer.

Where Bermudians are not available for a particular position, then that company has a right to scour the world for the best person. If that person is a black male, then all the better; but that should not be the major, or sole reason, for hiring the person.

It is ironic that Mr. Lister should raise this point now when the Bermuda College is agonising over whether to hire a black Bermudian woman, Dr. Larita Alford, as its Vice President for Academic Affairs, or to retain the current holder. Dr. Donald Peters, a black male who is also non-Bermudian.

It has been argued that Dr. Peters is exactly the kind of role model young black males need especially when females outnumbered males at the Bermuda College graduation by something like five to one. Yet Dr. Alford is by all accounts qualified for the position now -- there is no legal reason why she should not be given it.

This seems to be what concerns Home Affairs Minister Paula Cox, who pointed out to MPs on Friday that she, not Mr. Lister, is responsible for Immigration and her priority is to see that Bermudians are given a fair shake.

Mr. Lister has rightly said that what he is proposing cannot be done overnight. The same is true for the advancement of Bermudians in the workplace. But educating and training Bermudians -- and seeing that they get experience overseas -- is the real solution. The best possible role models for young Bermudians of all races and colours is to see Bermudians "who look like me'' getting ahead and reaching the top. That is where Government's priority should be.