Could Bermuda be drifting into a new era of "speak only if you think it will be pleasing to authorities of the day". Hopefully that will not be the direction the country is moving.

No democracy can survive without a healthy free press operating in the spirit of seeking out truth, in order to keep the people properly informed. Neither can the free Press survive under a dictatorial regime that suppresses the right to report without malice any issue affecting the people.

The basic principle of good journalism is to gather information carefully and professionally making certain that truth and accuracy are the cornerstones in the quest to inform. In the world of politics the gathering of information can be a challenge in the best of democratic societies.

However in any country where a Government determines that the press is to be stifled or prevented from the responsibility of informing the people on matters that cast a shadow of possible wrong doing, the seeds of rule by fear begin to take root.

Should the press engage in tailoring stories to keep officials in power happy they would not only be reneging in their enormous responsibilities, but they would not be serving the people who rely on them as the watchdog, when major questions crop up over controversial matters.

Would most Bermudians like to see two news publications who have been serving Bermuda well for many years snuffed out on the grounds that a government is unhappy with their reporting? I think not. What some people feel is creeping into play is a rule by fear and a type of how dare you question how we do things.

While that might not be the case, the impression by many and I have spoken to a cross-section of people, is that unless one is in total agreement with every Government policy they are considered as some type of traitor who is hell bent on bringing down the Government.

Having an impression is certainly not illegal and no one can be deprived of forming an impression one way or the other on various issues. What is sad in our small society is that usually personal attacks create an air of bitterness especially since the right to have a different view is a hallmark of democracy.

Fear has been used down through the ages in many countries to frighten people into silence. It is nothing new. History is full of leaders who brutally crushed resistance by making it clear that any dissenters would be harshly treated. In various parts of the globe even now, there are governments that rule by fear with people losing their lives to stand for principles that protect decency and truth.

Bermuda seems too small to have the free press listed as a target by any government. What message will this send to our young people. The press must ask questions and any government operating with full transparency should welcome the spotlight.

Without the press the common voice will be silenced and authorities can then operate without having to answer to anyone. Hopefully the Government will alter this stance of shutting out the press in order to restore some type of confidence within the community that they have nothing to hide.

There are some very good people trying to serve the country on both sides of the political divide but there is a need for them to make a stand for what is right rather than allow the cherished free press to be crushed. Even our clergymen should be more vocal when it comes to anything that stifles the right to know.

No one can ever shut out the truth. It may be covered or hidden for a while but wherever good men and women with values abide, somehow the real truth will be brought to the surface.

Bermuda must not lose its way in protecting that right. It begins with protecting the press and the right to know.

This opinion was written by Al Seymour