In his November 1st letter, Mr. Orhan Tarhan attacks and accuses the Greek and Armenian lobbies (and by implication Greek and Armenian-Americans) of ``hurting American interests'' and of ``activities [that] would be considered treason and would be treated as such''. Setting aside the obviously threatening ``Un-American activities'' overtones of his letter, individuals who share Mr. Tarhan's views should be reminded that in this land of freedom and democracy all groups are free to form lobbies, associations and societies to promote their point of view within the confines of the law. This includes Greeks and Armenians, Turks and Israelis, the dairy and the tobacco industries. The singling out of particular groups by Mr. Tarhan, himself Vice President of the Ataturk Society, is both preposterous and hypocritical. If Mr. Tarhan is dissatisfied with Turkey's image as portrayed by journalists, or unhappy with Congress' reaction to its foreign and domestic policies, he should look to remedying Turkey's horrific human and civil rights record(as well as address its long history of genocides and pogroms perpetrated against Armenians, Greeks, and Kurds(rather than scapegoat the very minorities which have suffered most from Turkey's oppressive policies.
Homer Faidas