By Harut Sassounian Publisher, The California Courier Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry issued a statement on the Armenian Genocide last week that goes far beyond what most other candidates have promised in the past. In addition to pledging to recognize the Armenian Genocide, Sen. Kerry stated that he would fight against its denial. Most Armenians, after terribly disappointing past experiences, have become very skeptical about promises made by previous presidential candidates. However, given Sen. Kerry's long-standing acquaintance with the Armenian community in Massachusetts, his support for the recognition of the Armenian Genocide in the U.S. Senate for the past 20 years, and his unequivocal statements on this subject, Armenians should be assured that Sen. Kerry is more worthy of our trust than past presidential candidates. For those who still remain skeptical, what alternative do they have? Pres. Bush has repeatedly proven that he cannot be trusted given his broken promises to recognize the Armenian Genocide. Here are excerpts from Sen. Kerry's latest statement issued over the weekend on the occasion of an Armenian fund-raising festival that was organized by the ANC in the Boston area: "I have been honored to represent tens of thousands of Armenian Americans as a Massachusetts Senator. And I look forward to representing hundreds of thousands of Armenian Americans as the next President of the United States. "It has been my privilege, over the past two decades, to work with the Armenian community on important issues including U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide, strengthening U.S.-Armenia relations and trade, lifting the devastating blockades of Armenia and working for a fair and lasting peace in Nagorno Karabagh.... "I want to assure you that, as President, I will continue to fight against the denial of the Armenian Genocide. My administration will recognize April 24, 2005 as the 90th Anniversary of this atrocity and will work to ensure that the lessons of this crime against humanity are used to prevent future genocides. There can be no compromise on the clear moral imperative to end genocide."

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