I cannot decide on a penalty against my harasser: Rae Munavvar

Rae Munavvar, who has accused the head of communications at the President’s Office of sexual harassment, has said that she should not be the one to decide a penalty against him.

Rae is the editor of the news outlet Mihaaru’s English edition, named ‘The Edition’.

She said this in response to a statement by the presidential spokesperson to India’s The Wire, which notes that Rae had not sought any penalties other than that Hassan Ismail “does not repeat his alleged behaviour”.

Rae made a similar statement in an article published on The Wire, written by her.

The presidential spokesperson’s statement further said that Rae had acknowledged “the difficulty of ascertaining facts when presented with two incongruent versions of a verbal exchange”

The same statement noted that Hassan was “admonished and warned” of more serious actions if other allegations surface, and that appropriate action will be taken against him if the allegations were found to be true following the police investigation. The journalist filed cases at the police and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) as well.

While Rae said that the chief of staff at the President’s Office, Ali Zahir had summoned her in January this year, she expressed concern over how the matter was handled. As such, Rae noted that the “legally mandated independent committee for oversight of harassment cases nowhere to be seen” when she spoke with Zahir.

She told RaajjeMV that this raises questions over transparency, and stressed that the president’s spokesperson does not have the right to allege on her behalf.

Further noting that she does not have a right to decide on a penalty against her alleged harasser, Rae said that she had sought to ensure that other women do not face the same harassment as well as that she would not face any discrimination for raising her voice against a senior official at the President’s Office.

Rae said that she has already started to feel the discrimination, but did not divulge further on the matter.

While Rae claims that Hassan Ismail had made inappropriate comments during a work meet-up, he is to have offered her opportunities and exclusive access to stories related to the president, in return for “some time” together at a resort or his apartment in neighboring Sri Lanka.

In The Wire article, Rae also claims that the chief of staff had informed her that Hassan had admitted to saying “some things” but that he denied that they were sexual in nature.

The incident is to have occurred in February 2019, and Rae filed complaints at the President’s Office, police and ACC, in January this year.

While Rae notes that she cannot decide on the penalty and the President’s Office seems to have let the case go with a warning, she stressed that such an individual “should not be allowed to continue in a position of influence, nor allowed to discriminate against or attempt to bribe journalists.”