CURE executive director Myra Virgil has backed Senator Kim Swan's call for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission to tackle racial tension, discrimination and prejudice.

She said the creation of such a body would be "a great thing" but she said, for practical purposes, it would have to be a very different set-up from its South African namesake.

In the Senate this week, Sen. Swan reiterated his long-held belief that Bermuda needed the Commission to get rid of "the albatross of institutional racism" that still hung around the island's neck.

He added that he sensed the community was now as "wound up on race and polarised", as if a general election campaign were in full swing.

But only the participation of all parts of the community, "speaking from the heart", could deal with Bermuda's ongoing racism problem, Sen. Swan said.

Ms Virgil said CURE (the Commission for Unity Racial Equality) had staged several forums on race this year, including those featuring American racism author Tim Wise, all of which had attracted good turnouts.

"The aim was for people to come and talk about their experiences of race and continue their conversations in their private lives," Ms Virgil said.

"CURE will continue to hold these events to try and heal wounds."

She said Sen. Swan's proposal was a good one and would further CURE's objectives, but it had practical limitations.

It could not resemble the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, she stressed. Instigated by the now retired archbishop, Desmond Tutu, it heard more than two years of testimony from more than 22,000 people about their suffering under the country's vicious apartheid regime. Those who carried out atrocities in the name of the regime were given amnesty for testifying in front of the panel. "In South Africa, they spent years flying in experts to make it function," Ms Virgil said. "People get very emotional when they're testifying and you need trained mediators to deal with that.

"I think it's a great idea for Bermuda, but you have to make sure you have everything you need. It requires good planning, implementation and resources."

Bermuda would have to come up with a structure that would work for the island's unique situation, Ms Virgil said.

Sen. Swan said yesterday that racial tension was being cranked up by a tendency to link the Independence issue to race, among other issues.

"Too many times when people mention the issue of race, it gets personal. And when their thinking becomes polarised, then clarity and objectivity go out of the window," Sen. Swan said.

"The way to deal with the institutional racism that still exists is not by finger-pointing at particular businesses or individuals. Bermuda's more sophisticated than that. We can make progress when we understand that it's the system we are up against, not individuals.

"The polarisation in the community right now, you can cut it like a knife. There is blame on both sides. I am appealing to people to put aside their fear of the unknown when it comes to this important issue and to deal with it in a non-partisan way."

A Truth and Reconciliation Commission would give people a chance to express their honest views on racism from the heart and help the island rid itself of "this festering pus", Sen. Swan added.

"We need to face up to the issue. To people who say institutional racism does not exist, I would say they are just perpetuating it, because they are in denial.

"When Nelson Mandela came out of prison, he could have been bitter, but instead he found a way to unite the people of South Africa. Bermuda needs the spirit of Mandela to help bring us closure."