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Iran’s Journalists Union (Anjomane Senfie Ruznamenegaran) has increasing come under ‎government pressure in recent weeks for its dissolution or basic changes in its work. Last ‎Thursday, on the occasion of World Press Day celebrated on May 3 every year to ‎celebrate fundamental principles of press freedom, the Union honored five outstanding ‎journalists during 2007 in Iran, all of whom have been suppressed by the government.‎

The Journalists Union honored Ahmad Borghani, the former press deputy at the Ministry ‎of Islamic Guidance during the reform administration of president Mohammad Khatami, ‎Lotfollah Meisami, a political activist from the pre-1979 revolution era and the managing ‎editor of Cheshmandazan Iran publication, Ozra Dejm, a long-time journalist working for ‎Pars news agency (the predecessor to the current IRNA) and among the most active ‎woman journalists in Iran, Hushang Golmakani, a well known journalist covering the ‎world of cinema , and Mohammad Ghoochani, the editor of Javan, and banned Shargh ‎and Ham-Mihan newspapers and Shahrvand Emrouz weekly at the Thursday gathering ‎that was held at the organization’s offices in Tehran. ‎

It is noteworthy that conservative news agencies in Iran refrained from covering the event ‎in unison. It is ironic that while IRNA state news agency did not report this event it did ‎publish a story on the award celebration of Uzbekistan’s leading journalists.‎