ACCUSATIONS that the Progressive Labour Party (PLP) election campaign was racist in nature have been dismissed as "laughable" by a campaign organiser.

Kim Swan, a United Bermuda Party (UBP) candidate in the July 24 poll, told this newspaper last week that the PLP had "fanned the flames of racism" in a campaign based on "white irrelevance".

But Walter Roban, the PLP's election day coordinator and a member of the party's campaign committee, said the PLP had campaigned on its record in Government.

"I just found it surprising and amusing to hear from Kim Swan such a detailed description of a campaign he had nothing to do with," said Mr. Roban. "To accuse the PLP of having conducted a racist campaign is laughable.

"The PLP ran this campaign on its record. It's a record where any Government policies that could be deemed racist or discriminatory have been dealt with. I challenge anybody to show examples of the PLP using racist policies during its time in Government.

"The fact is that the public has twice elected a PLP Government and that is a statement of what they believe about the UBP."

He denied any PLP involvement with printed material that Mr. Swan said had appeared on sports club noticeboards and in the mail suggesting that UBP candidates were "carrying out the slavemaster's agenda".

"Speaking as one of the campaign managers, I can say that no such material was produced by the PLP," said Mr. Roban. "This had nothing to do with the PLP.

"Mr. Swan should be very careful about who he is aiming these accusations against. He seems to be accusing the people who operate these clubs.

"Race plays a role in many aspects of Bermuda life and we are aware of that and deal with it with sensibility. We do not deal with it lightly, certainly not in a way that could abuse or insult people."

During their campaign, the PLP brought Kingsley Tweed back to the island after a 40-year exile.

When asked whether this move had been designed to rekindle the racial tensions of a bygone era of segregation, Mr. Roban said:"Kingsley Tweed came back, on the invitation of not only the PLP, but also family and friends.

"His return showed that Bermuda, having had a change of Government, had come further down the road of democracy and the protection of people's liberties.

"It should be remembered that it's only a couple of years ago that the members of the Progressive Group (which organised the 1959 theatre boycott that led to the collapse of officially sanctioned segregation) revealed themselves after many years in hiding. Kingsley Tweed has only come out a short time afterwards.

"It is of no benefit to Bermudians to run around escaping their history. It is of more benefit to those who didn't live in that era to learn about it.

"People can put whatever slant they want on it. It was of some importance to the PLP that Mr. Tweed came back, but it was done for benefit of all Bermudians.

"We had been trying to persuade Mr. Tweed to return well before the election. It just happened that the timing was at election time.

"People can read anything into it they like into it, but Mr. Tweed played a role in our history and he wanted to give a message during the election campaign."

He added that the PLP had a record of actively combatting racism, not promoting it.

"In 1998, people voted for the PLP to take away policies that were discriminatory," he said. "The second victory affirmed that people wanted that to continue.

"They didn't vote for us thinking we were 'fanning the flames of racism'. If we had been racist, would we have dealt with the long-tern residents issue? With CURE, we have promoted understanding among the Bermudian people.

"I think it's Mr. Swan who was 'fanning the flames of racism' with his comments."

Mr. Swan suggested that racism was like a computer virus doing damage in the community and proposed that it was time for a Race Relations Commission.

Mr. Roban said: "I think Mr. Swan is trying to dredge up old ideas. We had something similar in the late '50s and early '60s and we've had Royal Commissions too. Now we have CURE."