Bermudians abroad will be able to vote electronically, Premier Alex Scott revealed last night.

His revelation came at the Progressive Labour Party?s (PLP) second Independence meeting at Spice Valley Middle School.

Overseas student Alicia Phillips told him she could not vote in the last General Election.

Mr. Scott replied: ?We are now considering the ability for Bermudians to vote wherever they are around the world. When we do it we will also be able to do it electronically, so you can do it from your P.C. but we have to be able to confirm only one person is voting.

?So if we have a General Election in a short period of time, no, you would not have the option but in the not-too distant future we will have that option. It is something we have to do judicially and carefully.?

Mr. Scott also went into recent comments by Sen. David Burch that Governor Sir John Vereker should be recalled, saying that Bermuda would not be a ?total democracy? as long it had a Governor.

?There will come a time when we want to do something for ourselves, you see it every day ? it has happened in the Regiment.

?There is a controversy. The Governor said yes and no to a situation that impacts on us locally.

?He said yes or no to the Chief Justice. So there are things that show that we are not totally a democracy. That?s why we are here this evening to talk about Independence. It is not anti-Great Britain. It is pro-Bermuda, pro-our interest.

?Through our allies, through our friends, through the neighbours that we have here, the ability to represent ourselves at home and abroad is being developed right before your very eyes.?

In response to a question by James Gilbert, who asked how Bermuda could go Independent before cleaning up its own backyard first, the Premier said a recent diplomatic trip to the US was used to discuss the ?Stop List? as a way of taking care of Bermuda?s social ills.

?Yes, we are conscious of our social problems here,? Mr. Scott said. ?Drugs come through the US to Bermuda. Eighty-five percent of our drugs come through the US. For the CARICOM region, those drugs go from the south into the US. That?s the reason for us talking about a Coast Guard Station here.?

Government backbencher Nelson Bascome was interrupted by a heckler who got up to leave but said: ?We have a lot of social issues and everyone is sweeping it under the carpet?.

Undeterred, Mr. Bascome said it was good that the audience could express itself and that Independence should not be a political issue.

?We need to take this whole Independence debate out of the hands of politics and race and into the hands of people,? he said.

While the Bermuda Independence Commission (BIC) Report covered every question possible, it could not address the feelings and emotion of the ?great Island divide?.

?If we don?t come together at this time we will never come together,? he said. ?You need to talk with a Wayne Furbert, you need to talk with an Alex Scott and say to them, ?Listen gentlemen we understand you don?t always agree politically, but let?s sit down at the table?.

?If we continue to divide ourselves on that then you fundamentally cannot get persons? minds wrapped around the importance of Independence for our country,? Mr. Bascome said.

Premier Scott recalled the days when staunch anti-Independence speaker Harry Cox and pro-Independence stalwart Walter Robinson talked about the issue at the same public meeting.

Panellist and Government Whip Ottiwell Simmons said Independence itself did not make a country poor.

?Independence will not cause international companies to take flight. Tourists will continue to come and after Independence they may very well come in greater numbers. I can assure you that Bermuda is more than ready for Independence and certainly more ready than many other countries than when they were going to Independence.?

PLP member Kamal Worrell explained Independence meant many things to different people.

?To some it spells the end of unearned privilege for others it may mean the cessation of unscrupulous domination over others. While to another it may spell greater opportunity and the establishment of an ultimate sense of national pride which in turn leads towards greater unity.?

BIC and PLP member Marc Bean said Bermuda needed to be able to determine its own external affairs.

?While our historic partners have remained it would be unwise for Bermuda to put all its eggs in one basket.?

Mr. Bean also said Independence and full CARICOM membership would have cultural and economic benefits.