The President of Mexico has asked the King of Spain and the Pope to apologize for the abuses committed during the conquest

The President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has urged the King of Spain and Pope Francis to make a "historical review" and to excuse for the "grievances" committed during the conquest and the colony, in order to progress in the reconciliation between their nations.

"Let's give an account of what has happened since the beginning of the occupation, of the military invasion, of the three centuries of colonialism," said Monday the leader of the left commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Battle of Centla . First conquistador of Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés against the indigenous peoples of Mexico, in this case the Mayas-Chontales of the current state of Tabasco, which is from López Obrador.

In a video posted on his Twitter account, AMLO, when he calls the president in Mexico City, he revealed that he had sent "a letter to the King of Spain and another letter to Pope Francisco, so that it is possible to report on his grievances and to apologize to indigenous peoples for violations of what is now called human rights ".

The Mexican president talked about the "open wounds" and he said that conquest "He took the sword and the cross." He baderted that there were "mbadacres, impositions and churches were built over pre-hispanic temples.

"It is time to say that we are going to be reconciled but ask for forgiveness first," said the Mexican president. He also announced that he will apologize on behalf of the Mexican state for "repression of peoples of origin" that there was after the country's independence.

The Spanish Government rejected Mexico's request

The Spanish government was quick to announce that rejects "with all the firmness" the demand for apologiesand pointed out that "the arrival, 500 years ago, of Spaniards on current Mexican lands it can not be judged in the light of contemporary considerations"

"The head of state, King Felipe VI, has to apologize to any country, and this will not happen," said the vice president. of the Spanish Socialist Government, Carmen Calvo.

From Buenos Aires, where he accompanies the King of Spain during a state visit, the Spanish Foreign Minister, Josep Borrell, said that "it is obvious that Spain will not be presenting these extemporaneous excuses ".

For Borrell, it's "a little strange that right now he's planning to apologize for events that happened 500 years ago." Therefore, he said, Spain will not "ask the French Republic to apologize for what Napoleon's soldiers did when they invaded Spain", not more than the French are asking "apologies to the Italians for the conquest of Gaul by July". Caesar. "

"It's an authentic affront against Spain and against its history (…) I do not believe in the black Spanish legend that the conscious left is now trying to write, "said Pablo Casado, leader of the conservative People's Party and presidential candidate in the April 28 legislative elections .

"López Obrador's letter is an intolerable offense for the Spanish people, and that is how populism works: distorting history and seeking confrontation," said liberal Albert Rivera, leader of Ciudadanos.

By contrast, the radical left of Podemos left its mark and its spokesman, Ione Belarra, said that "he is very right [AMLO] asking the king to ask for forgiveness for the abuses of the 'conquest & # 39; ".

The Vatican, for its part, recalled that "the Holy Father has already clearly expressed it on this topic. "In July 2015, during his trip to Bolivia, Francisco, the first Latin American pope in history, asked" with humble pity "not only for" the crimes of the Church itself. but for crimes against indigenous peoples called the conquest of America ".

Francis acknowledged "with regret" that "many serious sins have been committed against peoples originating from America in the name of God"

On Tuesday, AMLO sought to ease the controversy and said his government "will not fall into a confrontation with Spain" about the letter. "This is an approach that we adopt and which we believe is appropriate for bringing our people together," he added.

López Obrador said he would seek to join a joint group "to report on what happened" 500 years ago during the Conquest. "And from there, humbly accept our mistakes and ask forgiveness and reconcile, among all," he concluded.