Spain Acknowledges “Pain & Injustice” Caused to Indigenous Peoples of Mexico

ByAli Rodríguez

This article by Ali Rodríguez originally appeared in the October 31, 2025 edition of El Sol de México.

Spain’s Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, acknowledged for the first time the injustice and pain caused to the Indigenous peoples of Mexico during the inauguration of an exhibition dedicated to the legacy of Indigenous women.

“There has been pain and injustice towards Indigenous peoples (…) there was injustice, and it is only right to acknowledge that today. It is only right to lament it because that is also part of our shared history, and we cannot deny or forget it.”

On Monday of this week, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum recalled the diplomatic episode stemming from the letter sent in 2019 by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to King Felipe VI and Pope Francis, in which he asked for historical reflection on the conquest and the injustices against Indigenous peoples.

“What we have always maintained is that the way they acted in response to the letter sent by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador—which was a very diplomatic letter requesting a form of apology for the atrocities of the past—was answered in an undiplomatic manner and, on the contrary, with a campaign they waged against President López Obrador in Spain,” he said.

The exhibition “Half the World: Women in Indigenous Mexico” brings together 435 pieces loaned by the Sheinbaum government and is divided among four Madrid venues: the Casa de México en España, the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum, the National Archaeological Museum (MAN), and the Cervantes Institute.

The pieces range from 1400 BC – as is the case with some figures from the Olmec culture – to the 21st century – some of the textiles shown at the Cervantes Institute.