Mexico asks excuses for colonial "abuses", Spain refuses<

The Mexican head of state also wrote to Pope Francis.

“I have sent a letter to the King of Spain and another to the Pope asking for the account of the abuses to be told and for an apology to be presented to the indigenous peoples [of Mexico] for the violations of what are called human rights today,” Lopez Obrador said in a video message on his Facebook page.

In this video filmed at the Mayan archaeological site of Comalcalco, in southeastern Mexico, the left-wing president asks them to recognize the violence suffered by indigenous peoples during the Conquest, which began after the arrival of the first conquistador Hernan Cortes in the 16th century.

“There were massacres, tax levies […]. The "Conquest", as it is called, was made with the sword and the cross, churches were built on the "pre-Hispanic" temples, he recalled.

“The time for reconciliation has come. But first let them ask for forgiveness,” added Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, from his home state of Tabasco.

The response from the Spanish government was swift and unequivocal. "The Government of Spain regrets that the letter sent by the Mexican President to His Majesty the King [of Spain Felipe VI], whose content she strongly rejects, has been made public," he said.

"Our brother peoples have always known how to read the past without anger and with a constructive perspective, as free peoples with a common heritage and extraordinary influence", continues the Spanish government.

Mexico will commemorate in 2021 the bicentenary of Mexican independence and the 500 years of the fall of Tenochtitlan, the former name of Mexico City under Aztec domination. The man nicknamed AMLO, after his initials, said he saw it as an opportunity for "historic reconciliation".

He also visited the nearby town of Centla on Monday, the scene of the first battle between Hernan Cortes and the indigenous peoples, on March 14, 1519.

The Mexican president announced that he would apologize for the "extermination" of indigenous peoples in independent Mexico, such as the Yaquis in the north of the country, or the Mayas in the south, as well as for the persecution of immigrants Chinese during the Mexican Revolution.

How to Paint Masonry Walls: Various methods are usually required while painting different surfaces. A wall mad... http://t.co/uK8b24kWAP

— Carter Holmes Wed Feb 27 04:36:55 +0000 2013

A mixed heritage

The Spanish Conquest of Mexico began in 1519 with an army of less than 1,000 men led by Hernan Cortes. This fine strategist, who managed to overthrow the Aztec Empire, paved the way for a 300-year period of colonization.

At the end of January, the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sanchez, paid an official visit to Mexico during which the countries reaffirmed their ties of friendship and cooperation.

The Mexican people are the product of a cultural mix between the New and the Old World.

According to a scientific study published by a Mexican government agency, 98% of the Mexican population is descended from a mixture of indigenous, European (mainly Spanish) and African populations.

Mr. Lopez Obrador, who took office on December 1, presented himself as an anti-system candidate, champion of the indigenous cause.

Controversies erupt regularly over colonial influence in Mexico today.

In mid-March, Jesusa Rodriguez, a senator from the AMLO party (Morena, left), had for example provoked many reactions by claiming on Twitter that the first Mexican taco made with pork, an animal introduced by the Spaniards in Mexico, had been tasted during a ceremony of the conquistadors of Cortes to celebrate the Aztec defeat.

“Remember that every time you eat a taco of pork carnitas, you celebrate the fall of Tenochtitlan,” the senator lamented about this emblematic dish of Mexican gastronomy.