a difficult exercise and often a frustrating exercise. That exercise is made all the more difficult and frustrating when the people involved are not Bermudians but want to make a profit out of Bermuda. We recognise that there are instances where the international rich are of great benefit to Bermuda and contribute enormously to Bermuda's well-being.

We do not think that Catchment Hill development is one of those instances. The difficulty at Catchment Hill arises because the people involved largely have no close attachment to Bermuda. They have an investment in Bermuda real estate which is allowed for hotels but not much else. They now want to use what is essentially hotel related land to speculate in Bermuda real estate. Opposing such a project is further complicated because the people involved, unlike Bermudians or local residents, have no reputation at stake in Bermuda which they might lose by behaviour that is not in Bermuda's best interest. There is no check and no balance.

The Mid Ocean Club and the Bermuda National Trust are united in attempting to prevent the proposed development of luxury homes for non-Bermudians on the open space and wooded areas of the Catchment Hill area in Tucker's Town. The Catchment Hill area is owned by Bermuda Properties which itself is largely owned by non-Bermudians.

We would have some sympathy for the owners if they planned to build houses for themselves but, in fact, non-Bermudians are planning to profit hugely by developing Bermudian real estate for sale to non-Bermudians. That does not seem to us to make any sense for Bermuda or Bermudians yet Bermuda's Planning Department has agreed to zone a large part of the area for residential development and the Government appears to be in support of the scheme.

Logically you might expect Bermuda's Government and its Planning Department to protect Bermuda from outside exploitation, and we do see this as exploitation, but that is not the case. This newspaper has to wonder why. If there is a good case for such exploitation it has not yet been made.

The situation at Catchment Hill is doubly complicated because the land was originally taken from black Bermudians on the basis that it would be used for tourism purposes which would benefit all Bermuda. Open space is now seen as important to the future of the tourism industry and it is proposed to build on Catchment Hill.

This is an era of conservation and concern for what kind of Bermuda we will leave for our children. Catchment Hill is a major area of open space and forest planned for devastation to benefit non-Bermudians. That seems to us to make no sense on any level.