Mexico Requests Apology from Spain

It all began in 1492 with a voyage headed by Christopher Columbus. In 1519, a small force headed by Hernán Cortés landed in the modern-day state of Veracruz to begin the conquest of Mexico. The formidable Aztec Empire was defeated by the Spanish in under two years. Cortés’ skillful leadership, which included forming local friends for his war against the Aztecs, as well as their better weaponry, were credited with their success. Large numbers of indigenous people perished in battles or massacres as the one at Cholula, while illnesses brought by the Spanish unwittingly killed a large number of people.

Mexico’s president has written to King Felipe VI of Spain and Pope Francis, pleading with them to apologize for human rights violations perpetrated during the region’s conquest 500 years ago. Mexico’s indigenous peoples, according to Andrés Manuel López Obrador, have been massacred. He demanded a complete accounting of the atrocities while speaking among the remains of an ancient city. Spain rejected his appeal and instead advocated for a “constructive stance.” Before winning independence in the early nineteenth century, the land that is now Mexico was under Spanish domination for 300 years. Spain was a fervently Roman Catholic country at the time of the conquest, and its aim was to extend Christianity to places like the Americas.

Since his inauguration in December, the man who became Mexico’s first leftist president in seven decades has been pursuing a radical agenda, pledging to fight corruption, decrease inequality, and bring millions of Mexicans out of poverty. He gave a video speech from an ancient site in Comalcalco, Tabasco, on Monday, in which he is shown speaking with First Lady Beatriz Gutierrez. In the video he states, “I have sent a letter to the Spanish king [Felipe VI] and another letter to the Pope so that the abuses can be acknowledged and an apology can be made to the indigenous peoples for the violations of what we now call human rights. There were massacres… The so-called conquest was done with the sword and the cross. They raised churches on top of temples.”

“The time has come to reconcile but first they should ask forgiveness,” the president continues. After Brazil, Mexico has the world’s second-largest Roman Catholic population. Only around a fifth of Mexicans identify as indigenous, yet studies show that many more have pre-Hispanic heritage. According to the AFP news agency, when Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Mexico in January, he gave President López Obrador with his grandpa José Obrador’s 1893 Spanish birth certificate.

After Brazil, Mexico has the world’s second-largest Roman Catholic population. Only around a fifth of Mexicans identify as indigenous, yet studies show that many more have pre-Hispanic heritage. According to the AFP news agency, when Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Mexico in January, he gave President López Obrador with his grandpa José Obrador’s 1893 Spanish birth certificate.

The Mexican president has cordial connections with Spain’s centre-left ruling party, but his desire for an apology was quickly denied by the Spanish administration. “The arrival, 500 years ago, of Spaniards to present Mexican territory cannot be judged in the light of contemporary considerations,” the government stated.
“Our two brother nations have always known how to read our shared past without anger and with a constructive perspective.” The Vatican did not respond immediately, but during a trip to Mexico three years ago, Pope Francis begged indigenous people for forgiveness for the way they had been marginalized in society. “Some have considered your values, culture and traditions to be inferior. Others, intoxicated by power, money and market trends, have stolen your lands or contaminated them. How sad this is,” he said. “How worthwhile it would be for each of us to examine our conscience and learn to say, ‘Forgive me!'”

It all began in 1492 with a voyage headed by Christopher Columbus. In 1519, a small force headed by Hernán Cortés landed in the modern-day state of Veracruz to begin the conquest of Mexico. The formidable Aztec Empire was defeated by the Spanish in under two years. Cortés’ skillful leadership, which included forming local friends for his war against the Aztecs, as well as their better weaponry, were credited with their success. Large numbers of indigenous people perished in battles or massacres as the one at Cholula, while illnesses brought by the Spanish unwittingly killed a large number of people.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/27/world/americas/mexico-spain-apology.html