Recently, in presidential discourse in our country, the use of the term “conquest” has become commonplace without any reference to the process of invasion that began in the 15th century in what is now Mexico. This comes amid efforts to resolve the dispute with the government of then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador—which resulted in a diplomatic standstill—following Spain’s rejection of the request for an apology for the abuses committed against Indigenous peoples.
Let us recall: the invasion—not the conquest—is associated with the so-called Doctrine of Discovery, which began in the 15th century and, after nearly three centuries, gave rise to the colonial era, which would formally end with the War of Independence. The Spanish Crown’s invasive campaign was validated by papal bulls, which granted Christian monarchies the exclusive right to claim lands inhabited by non-Christians. This was based on the premise that European explorers “discovered” lands that automatically became the property of the Crown, disregarding the preexisting sovereign and territorial rights of the native populations. Hence the so-called “spiritual conquest,” which resulted in the forced evangelization of “the aborigines” and culminated in a syncretism born of resistance.
Human rights and indigenous peoples’ organizations have demanded the permanent elimination of any vestige of this doctrine from the constitutional legal frameworks of the Americas. In 2015, during a trip to Bolivia, Pope Francis spoke of the “crimes” committed by the Church in the Americas. He added: “I humbly ask for forgiveness, not only for the offenses committed by the Church itself, but also for the crimes against indigenous peoples during the so-called conquest of the Americas.” Note: “the so-called” conquest.
In March 2023, the Holy See issued an official statement formally repudiating this doctrine. The Vatican clarified that the papal bulls never adequately reflected the Church’s teachings and condemned the historical abuses committed against indigenous peoples. The statement comes after decades of complaints from indigenous peoples, including at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which issued a strong recommendation in 2014.
Indigenous activism continues to this day. Recently, from May 18 to 22, 2026, the International Summit on the Doctrine of Discovery was held in Mexico City, where participants condemned the imposition of a biased version of history and law that has ignored the responsibility borne by the Spanish monarchy, the papacy, and the states of the region regarding the usurpation of territories, the theft of natural resources, forced displacement, impunity, and genocide, among other abuses.
During the summit—which was attended by Indigenous leaders from El Salvador, Guatemala, the United States, Chile, and Mexico, among others—it was emphasized that “the consequences of the Doctrine of Discovery are not a thing of the past, but also of the present and the future. All the acts that were committed remain fully in effect, such as land dispossession, which continues to affect communities, as well as the genocide of our peoples—an issue that persists with complete impunity.” They noted that rather than forgiveness, a commission for historical clarification is required.
Against this backdrop, let’s return to President Claudia Sheinbaum’s stance on renewing the call for an apology from Spain—a position she expressed during a recent trip to Madrid and reiterated in her interview with King Felipe VI in Mexico City, on the occasion of his visit to Guadalajara to attend his country’s soccer match. The President explained during her morning press briefing that she emphasized the importance of apology for the abuses committed during the conquest—both for Mexico and for the vindication of Indigenous peoples—and viewed it as a positive step that King Felipe VI acknowledged in Madrid last March, during his visit to the exhibition dedicated to women in Indigenous Mexico, that abuses had indeed been committed. However, the king remained cautious, leaving the door open by noting that one of the working groups at the upcoming Ibero-American summit—scheduled for November in Madrid—will be dedicated to indigenous peoples; he therefore expressed his interest in continuing to work together on this issue moving forward. The President has already announced that three exhibitions are being prepared for that summit. It should be noted that it was mentioned that the interview with the king also touched on the economy, and the amount of Spanish investment in our country was highlighted. The normalization of diplomatic relations also takes this aspect into account. While the apology is forthcoming, the peoples of the Americas await the decree of reparation—no longer from the Pope, but from the state.
Original text by Magdalena Gómez published in La Jornada on July 7th, 2026.
Translation by Schools for Chiapas.