Their motto is to build goodwill and forge better friendships — but two of Bermuda's Rotary clubs may be about to fall out over the issue of female membership.

Hamilton Rotarians will hear a motion next Tuesday on the topic from member Jim Brock, who told the club's weekly luncheon yesterday that no Rotary club should discriminate against those wanting to join on any grounds, including gender.

He gave notice of the motion after female member Joy Lusher told the meeting that Sandys Rotary did not allow women members.

That claim, however, was later refuted by Sandys Rotarians, who told The Royal Gazette the club had no such policy and did accept nominations for females — though no women are currently members.

The topic came up at the luncheon at the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club when president Neville Tyrrell announced that Sandys Rotary had invited the Hamilton branch to attend a dinner aboard a ship next month as part of the Tall Ships Festival.

Mrs. Lusher called out at that point: "Will women be allowed to attend?" At the end of the meeting, she quoted the full Rotary motto to fellow members: "Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships? Will it be beneficial to all concerned?"

Mrs. Lusher said: "I feel I would not like to be associated with a branch of Rotary that does not stand up to and honour our motto. I don't know what we are going to do about it.

"I can't see that we can actually support another branch that does not honour our motto."

Mr. Tyrrell said Mr. Brock's motion would get a full airing at the next meeting. He told this newspaper: "I think Joy has done right to raise the issue. I am not speaking on behalf of the club, but many of us are a little miffed that they stick to these old traditions.

"The other three clubs in Bermuda certainly have women. Sandys seems to hold out on that."

But Sandys president elect James Watlington told this newspaper the Hamilton branch had got it wrong. "There is no policy," he said. "There is nothing to stop a member of Sandys Rotary bringing forward a female member.

"I'm seriously considering nominating female members myself. It's very important that we replenish our membership — that's the focus now of Rotary.

"We need active people that want to join our club to sustain us for the future. I don't care what race, creed, colour or gender they are. Like all organisations we have to change and move with the times."

Mr. Watlington said he believed the club had previously had at least one female member.

Opposition MP Charlie Swan is also a member of Sandys Rotary. He said: "I don't know what their motivation is. It sounds like they may have put to you the wrong sort of thing.

"I don't think it's a policy of Sandys Rotary at all that women aren't members or aren't allowed to be members."

Rotary is a worldwide organisation, founded at the start of last century, of more than 1.2 million business, professional, and community leaders, who raise funds and do good work for charity. Women have been allowed to join since the late 1980s.