A conference organiser has accused a top civil servant of "deception and bad faith'' in negotiations to bring a prestigious convention to the Island.

And she has also suggested that racism could be at the heart of the trouble-hit plan to hold the World Conference of Mayors in Bermuda.

But despite the strengthening ill-feeling between the two camps, and the ever growing possibility that Bonnie Marshall will eventually sue the Government to get funding, both sides held a second set of emergency talks late last night in a bid to iron out their differences. However neither side was available for comment on the late talks.

Yesterday Ms Marshall, who heads the Afro American Global Trade and Tourism Council, told The Royal Gazette that an agreement was thrashed out with Tourism director Gary Phillips over the payment of a $100,000 sponsorship package to her company when the two sides met on Monday night.

But before the deal could be signed, Ms Marshall claims that Solicitor General William Pearce stepped in and scrapped the agreement. He then contacted Ms Marshall's attorney, Phil Perinchief, yesterday and insisted that Ms Marshall provide a marketing plan before any further payments were made.

"We negotiated for about two hours and we made a lot of headway and Mr.

Phillips, for the first time, demonstrated to me that he really wants to have this conference here,'' she said. "He worked and negotiated in good faith and tried to resolve the difficulties between the AAGTTC and the Department.

"Mr. Phillips was extremely impressed with the work we have done -- he was surprised and pleased. We all got up and shook hands and we were pleased that we had made an agreement and then Mr. Pearce said `Wait a minute, what are you all doing here, I don't want to do this'.

"We thought it was a joke. He was going backwards, demanding that we honour the contract with the World Conference of Mayors.'' Ms Marshall also praised the efforts of World Conference of Mayors founder Johnny Ford, but added: "His real motivation has been to try and keep the peace -- he was not astute to Mr. Pearce's deception and bad faith''.

And when asked if she thought race could be a cause for the dispute, Ms Marshall admitted that it could be a possibility. She had earlier accused the Department of Tourism of not being interested in tapping into the Afro American market.

At the centre of the dispute is an agreement made by the Department of Tourism with the World Conference of Mayors last May in which it was determined that the Department would pay out $25,000 to Ms Marshall's organisation for operational expenses. A further payment of $75,000 would then be made, via the World Conference of Mayors, once a detailed marketing plan had been submitted by Ms Marshall.

Ms Marshall insists that her company had nothing to do with negotiating that contract and that she has also submitted a marketing strategy.

But yesterday Tourism director Gary Phillips denied that Mr. Pearce had deliberately sabotaged the agreement. He insisted that, while he had been impressed with Ms Marshall's proposals, Monday's meeting ended with an understanding that the AAGTTC would still provide a detailed marketing plan before any more payments were made.

"We need specifics,'' Mr. Phillips said.

"Ms Marshall said she had everything in her head but it was generalisations.

We need to know where the event, and Bermuda, is going to be advertised, what magazines, what radio stations, what brochures are going to be produced. We still don't have that.'' Mr. Phillips insisted that the money would be forthcoming once the plan had been presented.

Although the outcome of last night's talks is still unknown, Ms Marshall said that the conference will still definitely go ahead. She said she will continue working to organise and promote the conference, even if she has to use her own money to do so.

And she presented to the media a list of events already organised for the conference, including a fashion show, tropical beach concert and celebrity golf tournament.

"This is going to be a star-studded, very prominent event,'' she promised.