Neda doesn't come alone

The groom of the victim of the "green" revolution in Iran became a media idol, but many consider him another son of Lieutenant Schmidt

In the same black suit, he gives an interview to Al Jazeera. Minutes later you hear his voice on the American CBC, and the next day he appears on German or French television. A polished, slightly pale brunette with a romantic tired look and a low velvety voice, sighing languidly and modestly lowering his eyes, once again tells the sad story of his beloved - Neda Aga-Soltan.

Surrounded by Iranian freedom fighters, he says that Neda was "an intelligent and honest girl with a sharp mind" and after her death became "a symbol of the freedom of the Iranian people." Meet Caspian Makan - a man who recommends himself as a specialist in architecture and film art, photographer, documentary filmmaker, poet and writer. Humanity knows almost nothing about his achievements in the above areas. He is known to the world as a knight of a sad image, who devoted his life to the unfortunate victim of a bloody regime.

26-year-old Neda really became a symbol of the "green" revolution - the riots in Tehran, brutally suppressed by the authorities in June last year. The girl was shot dead by a sniper when she got out of the car, stuck in traffic due to the demonstration of the "green" opposition. The murder was captured on the cell phone camera of one of the protesters. The 40-second video was posted on YouTube and went around the world at the speed of light. It was at the end of June last year.

A couple of days after the tragedy, a man appeared in Tehran who called himself the fiance of the deceased girl. It was Caspian Makan. Journalists immediately attacked him. For several days he gave interviews right and left, but then suddenly disappeared. In September, Amnesty International said he was held in Tehran's notorious Evin prison for more than two months before being released. A couple of months later, Makan got in touch with journalists in Turkey and again found himself in the spotlight of the world press.

He spoke with the press with great pleasure. True, all the time he asked for something - either to pay for a flight to a television studio in London, or to provide an expensive suit to look good in front of the cameras. The media marathon gradually turned into a world tour. Armed with a couple of photographs and a strand of hair of a murdered girl, Makan spoke at various peacekeeping summits and human rights forums, talking about the last days of Neda's life and bringing the ideas of democracy to the masses.

In early March, he spoke at the "Geneva Summit on Human Rights, Tolerance and Democracy", which was attended by over 800 representatives of leading international human rights organizations. And at the end of last month, Makan already met in Israel with President Shimon Peres, to whom he introduced himself as "the envoy of the Iranian people."

It was this meeting that overflowed the patience of the Iranian oppositionists. They saw it as an attempt to discredit the "green" movement in the eyes of ordinary Iranians, who for the most part perceive Israel as a hostile state. “The trip of the fiance Neda Aga-Soltan to Israel is a clear example of the use of the “green” movement for personal purposes. Caspian Makan is not its representative and does not play any significant role in it,” read an editorial statement published on the influential opposition website jarasnews.com. And on the social network Facebook there was a group called "Green Movement Campaign to condemn the self-promotion of Caspian Makan." It already has over 800 members.

At the same time, a journalist, an expert on the Middle East Jason Athanasiadis, one of those who took part in his promotion after Makan appeared in Turkey, made accusations against Makan. Now Athanasiadis says Neda would "roll over in her grave" if she knew what her fiancé was up to.

Makan did not like Athanasiadis right away, the journalist says in an interview with Newsweek. According to him, the Iranian spoke about himself all the time and at the same time demanded that the photographs taken by him in Iran be published in the world press. According to Athanasiadis, the quality of the shooting left much to be desired - Makan was clearly an unprofessional photographer. True, he claimed to have taken photographs of snipers shooting at unarmed demonstrators from helicopters. But they were allegedly confiscated in Iran. At the same time, none of the hundreds of thousands of participants in the Tehran demonstrations saw any helicopters with snipers. He also regretted the loss of two bottles of toilet water, which were taken from him by smugglers who helped him cross the border. Makan bought them, believing that cologne is much more expensive in Turkey.

Despite his doubts, Athanasiadis decided to publish the interview with Makan. According to him, “I felt sorry for the man who was in Evin prison.” Later, the journalist contacted Neda's family in Tehran. Referring to relatives, he claims that Caspian met with the girl for no more than two months, but she left him, accusing him of treason. “That explains his absence from Neda's final moments,” says Athanasiadis.

However, his words contradict the statement of the girl's mother, Hajar Rostami Motlag, made in an interview with the BBC Persian Service. The mother confirmed that Makan was indeed her daughter's fiancé, although they met only two months before her death and that the wedding would have taken place if not for the sudden death. The journalist is not embarrassed. “He was never Neda's fiancé, as he himself told me in an interview in Ankara,” says Athanasiadis. “But he allows the press to claim otherwise, and the family is forced to confirm his words due to the peculiarities of Iranian culture: if it turns out that they just met (without the intention of marrying. - Newsweek ) , Neda’s memory will be blackened.”

Recognizing her daughter's engagement, Neda's mother at the same time declared that Makan had no right to use her name for personal purposes. “It's not just about Israel. Everything Caspian says and does is his own decision. Nobody chose him as an envoy. He does not represent Neda, her family and the people of Iran,” Hajar Rostami Motlag said.

According to Athanasiadis, Neda's family doubts that Caspian was ever in prison. According to relatives, all this time he was in Canada, where he tried to obtain political asylum. Athanasiadis himself does not have exact information about where Makan was at the beginning of autumn.

New York psychologist Ben Michaelis suggests that Makan suffers from narcissistic personality disorder. A person with such a diagnosis is not always able to control his actions, the meaning of which is to disguise low self-esteem and all kinds of complexes. According to Anastasiadis, one need only look at Makan's Facebook page to be convinced of his narcissism.

Newsweek via Facebook sent Makan a request for comment on the situation around him. The answers came in literary English, which Makan does not speak. According to Athanasiadis, in his work with the press, Makan uses the services of Canadian PR people who stylize his texts. Makan told Newsweek that he was engaged to Neda and that he ended up in Evin prison six days after her death. "In addition to being Neda's fiancé, the reason for my arrest was that I worked as a journalist and photographer, exposing crimes against humanity committed by the Islamic Republic of Iran."

Makan is outraged by claims that he is promoting himself. “Why should I do this? Everyone in Iran knew me because I was an artist, director and photographer. I have written several books and made several documentaries,” Makan said. He claims to have been imprisoned with "prominent political prisoners" and was "temporarily released at the insistence of Neda's family." After that, according to his version, he left the country - "not because he was afraid, but because he wanted to tell the truth about the crimes."

In the human rights community, Makan is also treated with distrust. Asked to comment on the Makan hype, Aaron Rhodes of Iran Human Rights International said his organization only deals with "real dissidents." According to him, human rights activists honor the memory of Neda Aga-Soltan and consider it inappropriate to appeal to her personality without a reason.