July 9, 1998

The Nobel Peace Prize Committee
Nobelinsintuttet
Drammensvein 19
N-0255 Oslo, Norway

Dear Committee Members,

For years now, I have been troubled by the imprisonment of a Kurdish 
woman, Leyla Zana, now serving the fifth year of her 15 year sentence in 
prison in Turkey.  As you may now, she was duly elected to serve her 
Kurdish constituency in the Turkish parliament with an overwhelming 
margin in 1991.  The authorities have accused her of "treason" but Amnesty 
International has declared her a "prisoner of conscience".  One of the actions 
undertaken by Mrs. Zana which placed her under scrutiny included testifying 
and petitioning for human rights before the Helsinki Commission of the U. 
S. Congress; another was the act of taking her parliamentary oath in Kurdish 
and for speaking in Kurdish during a Turkish parliament broadcast live to 
the country, which earned her the label of "terrorist" from the Turkish 
government.

Last year, over 150 members of the United States Congress signed a letter 
addressed to President Clinton asking for his assistance in seeking the release 
of Mrs. Zana.  Together with the Ranking Democratic Member of the House 
International Relations Committee, Lee Hamilton, I have written to our 
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright expressing our concern over the 
continued imprisonment of public figures, such as Mrs. Zana.  In the light of 
the violations of the most basic human rights of Kurdish citizens by the 
Turkish government, the Turkish authorities' push to join the European 
Union appears unacceptable and inconsistent with the values, record, and 
standing of the Union.

Given the intransigence of the Turkish government and the high esteem 
with which the world views the Nobel Peace Prize, I am writing to request 
that you consider the nomination of Leyla Zana for the 1998 award.  The 
move will not only demonstrate to the Turkish authorities the international 
community's high regard for Leyla Zana but may also pave the way for a 
peaceful resolution of the Kurdish-Turkish conflict.

I thank you for your consideration of this request.

						Sincerely,




						Benjamin A. Gilman
						Chairman