Kuala Lumpur: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has arrived at the World Trade Centre Kuala Lumpur (WTCKL) to officiate the highlight of the National Journalists’ Day (HAWANA) 2025 celebration. He was welcomed by Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil and his deputy Teo Nie Ching upon his arrival at 11.45 am.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, other notable attendees included Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) Datuk Seri Dr Zaliha Mustafa, Ministry of Communications Secretary-General Datuk Mohamad Fauzi Md Isa, Bernama Chairman Datuk Seri Wong Chun Wai, Bernama Chief Executive Officer Datin Paduka Nur-ul Afida Kamaludin, and Bernama Editor-in-Chief Arul Rajoo Durar Raj, who is also the director of HAWANA 2025.
The Prime Minister is scheduled to address approximately 1,000 guests, comprising local and international media practitioners. The event, themed ‘Journalism in the New Era: Embracing AI, Safeguarding Ethics’, is organised by the Ministry of Communications, with Bernama as the implementing agency, and supported by various media organisations and strategic industry partners.
During the celebration, the Prime Minister will present the HAWANA 2025 Special Award and the HAWANA 2025 Award to individuals who have made significant contributions to journalism. Furthermore, he will present prizes to the winners of the HAWANA-DBP 2025 Pantun Festival, held on May 31.
Additionally, he is set to present contributions from the Tabung Kasih@HAWANA to three veteran journalists in need, as a gesture of appreciation and concern for media professionals who have shaped the landscape of journalism in the country. Representatives from media associations, journalist clubs, and news organisations from Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, and China have gathered in the capital since Friday, participating in a series of programmes held in conjunction with the prestigious event, now in its fifth edition.
The HAWANA celebration was first introduced in 2018 to honour the contributions of journalists to national development, with May 29 chosen as the official date in recognition of the first publication of ‘Utusan Melayu’ in 1939.