Lisa Hanna Breaks Silence On Alleged Kate Middleton Snubbing Incident In Jamaica

Lisa Hanna addressed the various reports claiming she snubbed Kate Middleton during their encounter when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Jamaica as part of their Caribbean tour.

A Member of Parliament and former Miss World, Hanna was among the dignitaries present during the ceremonial welcome at the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica, Tuesday afternoon. However, a video of her allegedly snubbing Middleton made the rounds online, prompting several netizens to call her rude. Hanna broke her silence to end the various speculations by discussing her encounter with the British royal couple on Twitter.

"Today I welcomed Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge Kate to Jamaica on behalf of the Leader of the Opposition in celebration of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee," she began her post.

"We had a very interactive and pleasant conversation throughout the proceedings as we talked about family, our cultures and our people," she added.

Hanna, a member of the opposition People's National Party, confirmed that they wanted to be independent of the monarchy. However, she said that "we will always remain a courteous and respectful country."

"I welcome them wholeheartedly with our warm hospitality and look forward to us having productive discussions about our future," she concluded her series of posts.

In the viral video, Middleton smiled while talking to Hanna, who seemingly did not react and turned her face to the other side. Her gesture prompted the netizens to speculate that she gave the duchess the cold shoulder. Online users pointed out that Prince William's wife seemed aware of the snub but kept her poise. She chose to turn her head forward without a smile, and Hanna turned her face back to look at the duchess shortly after.

The 5-second clip was too short to describe the encounter between the two, especially since they were friendly and cordial in most parts of the event. Some netizens did not notice the alleged snubbing because if one would look at a longer video, the two women appeared engrossed in a conversation.

"They seem to be getting on well here," another online user said while sharing a clip of Middleton and Hanna smiling while talking to each other.