Glory to the Dedicated Journalists
By: Kayhan Int’l Staff Writer
Yesterday the Islamic Republic of Iran marked the “National Journalist Day’ in honour of the martyred journalist of the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), who was the victim of savagery of the takfiri terrorists.
We all remember Mahmoud Saremi as a soft-spoken dedicated to serving the country in the media field with facts and realities, without the least regard for the safety of his life in a hostile environment.
A gentle person who would not even hurt a fly he lost his life while on duty in Afghanistan ravaged by rival militias jockeying for power.
It was in 1998 this unpardonable crime occurred when members of a takfiri militia violated the immunity of the Iranian consulate in the city of Mazar-e Sharif and gunned down at least ten diplomats along with Saremi.
Since then every year, we pay tribute to him by stressing the sacred duty of media persons covering news and events, at home and abroad with professional dedication, even during wartime.
Speakers at various seminars on August 8 highlighted the high status that journalists hold in conveying truth to society, noting that without their efforts, many factual happenings and important events would be forgotten, while crimes against humanity and acts of terrorism would remain concealed or interpreted in a different way.
The duty of the media persons is to focus on facts, explain them in a proper way to the audience, while exposing distorted and fake news, in order to strengthen the society.
The media represents a battlefield of its own, with the pen, the camera, and skilled presentation of the realities, being instrument of defence to sift truth from falsehood, whether or not a particular event is favourable.
A committed journalist also knows the enemies, whether the brutal ones or those disguising their tirade in diplomacy in a bid to deceive the public opinion.
It is here that the work of a journalist becomes more significant and may pose dangers to his or her life while covering important events, since the cowardly enemies deliberately target media persons as part of their evil plan to silence the voice of truth.
The number one enemies of journalists are the illegitimate Zionist entity and the US regime, especially the current dude in the White House called Donald Trump who has a habit of venting his anger at dedicated journalists.
Nevertheless, this sacred profession is too strong to be scared by the likes of the enemies, and thanks to the spirit of martyrs like Iran’s Mahmoud Saremi, it gains new strength every day, week, month, and year.