TEHRAN A prominent professor yesterday underlined the importance of free press' and said the governments shoulder significant responsibility for making necessary facilities for the media. Dr. Kazem Motamid-Nizjad was addressing students, professors and journalists at Allameh Tabatabie University on the occasion of the International Day for the Freedom of the Press. Motamid-Nizjad said, The media should not be owned by the government or the capitalists.

Editorial staff should have freedom for its professional activities, he said. Motamid-Nizjad said that media persons association coupled with the freedom of the press can be effective in defusing plots of the enemies against the Islamic Republic. Persian daily Kar-o-Kargar's Managing Director Ali Rabi'i, addressing the same gathering, lauded the role of the media in the society and said, media persons however have sensitive responsibility.' Another Persian daily Salam's Abbas Abdi said that freedom of press is a necessity that must be observed with certain reservations.

Abdi said, Today we have more educated people in our society and it is necessary that we should keep our freedom intact.