Minutes of a meeting between Bernie Grant MP and Afif Safieh of the PLO

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This document presents the minutes of a meeting held on 10th January 1991 between Bernie Grant MP and Afif Safieh of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO). The discussion focused on international issues, notably the Iraqi position during the Gulf crisis and its linkage to the Palestinian struggle. It provides insight into Bernie Grant's perspective on global conflicts and the complexities of political negotiations during that period.

Key points:
– Bernie Grant’s trip to Iraq aimed to understand the Iraqi position amid what he saw as biased media coverage.
– Grant believed the Iraqi bargaining position was firm and their demands reasonable, emphasizing the importance of connecting the Iraqi and Palestinian struggles.
– Both Grant and Safieh were cautiously optimistic about peace negotiations taking place in Switzerland, although media remained skeptical about linking the Iraqi and Palestinian issues.
– Grant identified military power, rather than oil, as the central issue in the Gulf conflict and warned the US sought to place a pro-American government in Iraq.
– There was a perceived gradual shift in public opinion towards peace, with Grant noting a positive change in the Labour Party’s stance compared to the Conservative Party.

This meeting exemplifies Bernie Grant’s commitment to internationalism and solidarity with global liberation struggles, particularly relating to Palestine. His engagement reflects the broader concerns within Black British political activism around anti-imperialism and linking local political work with global justice movements during the early 1990s.

Source note: The OCR transcript exhibits minor typographical inconsistencies but reliably conveys the meeting’s content and key themes.