They fear a possible fourth wave in Spain 1:07
(CNN) -
Spain's infantas Elena and Cristina received the covid-19 vaccine recently while visiting their father, Spain's King Emeritus Juan Carlos, in Abu Dhabi, where he lives, Infanta Elena said in a brief released Wednesday.
The vaccinations of the two members of the royal family - long before their time than they would have received in Spain - have generated controversy since the news was first released by the digital newspaper El Confidencial in Madrid.
Several ministers in the Spanish government's cabinet publicly criticized the two infanta on Wednesday, and Infanta Elena shortly thereafter issued a statement that she said was "in response to media reports about the vaccination."
"Both my sister (Cristina) and I have come to visit our father and, in order to have a health passport that would allow us to do it regularly, we were offered the possibility of getting vaccinated, to which we agreed," wrote Infanta Elena .
"If it had not been for this circumstance, we would have agreed to the vaccination shift in Spain, when it would have been our turn," the statement concluded.
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The short statement was sent to a few journalists who usually cover the royal family and published in Spanish media, but not through a public relations firm or an attorney representing Elena, they told CNN.
CNN has seen a copy of the statement.
What does the Royal House of Spain say about vaccinations for infantas?
The Royal House of Spain had nothing to do with Infanta Elena's statement, two spokespersons told CNN, distancing the Zarzuela Palace from the infantas.
A spokesperson for the Royal Household pointed out that the infantas Elena and Cristina, although sisters of King Felipe of Spain, have not had any official duty as members of the royal family at least since 2014, when King Felipe assumed the throne and focused the duties officers only in the nucleus of the royal family: in it, Queen Letizia and her two daughters, Crown Princess Leonor and Infanta Sofía.
The Royal House spokesman also emphasized to CNN that the king, queen and their two daughters are strictly following the health guidelines for covid in Spain and will "wait their turn" for vaccines in Spain, according to their ages and conditions of use. Health.
Spain, like other European Union countries, has had delays in its vaccine program due to shortages of supplies.
There are also cases of various government officials and even some clergymen of the Roman Catholic Church who have skipped the queue to get vaccinated.
Several of them later publicly apologized and some even resigned from their positions.
Vaccines and status of covid-19 in Spain
Data from the Ministry of Health show that only 1.4 million people in Spain have received both doses of the Pfizer / BioNTech or Moderna vaccines, along with others who have received the AstraZeneca vaccine, in a population of about 47 million.
Spain first vaccinated residents of nursing homes and their workers, and later many hospital workers and other medical workers and some members of the public force, such as the police.
But the country is currently administering the vaccine to people 80 and older, who do not live in nursing homes.
Infantas Elena and Cristina are around 50 years old.
His father, King Emeritus Juan Carlos, 83, left Spain last August for Abu Dhabi amid a scandal over his finances.
CNN contacted the Mapfre insurance company foundation, where Infanta Elena works, but the press office said it did not release its statement.
CNN has also contacted a lawyer who has represented Princess Cristina's family and, separately, government officials in Abu Dhabi, but did not get immediate responses in either case.
Infanta Cristina Infanta Elena Rey Juan Carlos I