JK Rowling’s ex admits to ‘slapping’ her following domestic abuse allegations

The Harry Potter author’s ex-husband has responded to claims he was abusive, admitting he “slapped” her – but says he’s “not sorry” about it.

JK Rowling’s first husband has responded to her claims that he was abusive, confirming that he slapped her – but insisting he’s “not sorry”.

Jorge Arantes, 52, told The Sun he had not bothered to read the accusations of domestic abuse by his ex-wife.

“I slapped Joanne – but there was not sustained abuse. I’m not sorry for slapping her,” he told the publication on Thursday.

The ex-drug addict, who is father to the Harry Potter author’s oldest daughter, Jessica, addressed her recent claim that she was a domestic abuse and sexual assault survivor.

“If she says that, that’s up to her. It’s not true I hit her,” Mr Arantes said, before being questioned on his own admission a decade ago that he had hit her on the night she left him.

“Yes. It is true I slapped her. But I didn’t abuse her.”

Arantes and Rowling.

RELATED: Harry Potterstar speaks out against JK Rowling

Earlier this week, Rowling, 54, addressed – for the first time publicly – being a domestic abuse and sexual assault survivor as she defended herself amid backlash over her views on transgender women.

The author was hit with widespread condemnation and accused of transphobia when she called out a headline that read, “People who menstruate”.

“I’m sure there used to be a word for those people,” Rowling tweeted.

“Someone help me out. Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”

Rowling then responded to the initial backlash on Twitter, telling her 14.5 million followers: “If sex isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased.”

She added: “I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth.”

I respect every trans person’s right to live any way that feels authentic and comfortable to them. I’d march with you if you were discriminated against on the basis of being trans. At the same time, my life has been shaped by being female. I do not believe it’s hateful to say so.

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 6, 2020

Listing her reasons for speaking out, Rowling addressed her difficult past with abuse.

“This isn’t because I’m ashamed those things happened to me, but because they’re traumatic to revisit and remember,” she said.

“I’m mentioning these things now not in an attempt to garner sympathy but out of solidarity with the huge numbers of women who have histories like mine, who’ve been slurred as bigots for having concerns around single-sex spaces.

“I managed to escape my first violent marriage with some difficulty, but I’m now married to a truly good and principled man, safe and secure in ways I never in a million years expected to be. However, the scars left by violence and sexual assault don’t disappear, no matter how loved you are, and no matter how much money you’ve made.

“My perennial jumpiness is a family joke – and even I know it’s funny – but I pray my daughters never have the same reasons I do for hating sudden loud noises, or finding people behind me when I haven’t heard them approaching.”

Rowling revealed this week that she is a survivor of domestic abuse and sexual assault. Picture: Angela Weiss/AFP

Rowling also spoke about the barrage of abuse she’s been hit with since talking about the trans movement.

“It isn’t enough for women to be trans allies. Women must accept and admit that there is no material difference between trans women and themselves,” she wrote.

“But, as many women have said before me, ‘woman’ is not a costume. ‘Woman’ is not an idea in a man’s head. ‘Woman’ is not a pink brain, a liking for Jimmy Choos or any of the other sexist ideas now somehow touted as progressive.

“Moreover, the ‘inclusive’ language that calls female people ‘menstruators’ and ‘people with vulvas’ strikes many women as dehumanising and demeaning. I understand why trans activists consider this language to be appropriate and kind, but for those of us who’ve had degrading slurs spat at us by violent men, it’s not neutral – it’s hostile and alienating.”