The Colombian president, Gustavo Petro, assured this Saturday, October 12, that “there was no discovery” of America because before 1492 there were already human beings inhabiting the continent.
«There was no discovery. Human beings in America had already known each other for tens of thousands of years,” said the Colombian president on the social network X.
Petro added: “Whoever is unaware of this reality should go to Chibiriquete, San José del GuaviareColombia, where the prehistoric Sistine Chapel is located. “About twenty thousand years of enormous and beautiful murals of a culture that was being born.”
The Serranía de Chiribiquete national natural park, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, is known as a sacred indigenous center and cradle of the jaguar.
It is also an archaeological and biological treasure in which the cave paintings of La Lindosa and the tepuis, abrupt plateaus with vertical walls and relatively flat tops.
The Colombian Government is commemorating this Saturday the day of ethnic and cultural diversity, instead of race day.
«We commemorate the richness of the diverse cultures and traditions that make up our country. This day is an opportunity to reflect on the importance of inclusion and respect for all ethnic identities, recognizing that each culture enriches our social fabric,” the Foreign Ministry said in a message published on its social networks.
Petro and his Government thus intervene in the debate that arose in Mexico in 2019 when the then Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, asked the King of Spain, Felipe VI, in a letter to apologize for the conquest.
There was no discovery.
Human beings in America had already known each other for tens of thousands of years.Anyone who does not know this reality should go to Chibiriquete, San José del Guaviare, Colombia, where the Sistine Chapel of prehistoric times is located. About twenty thousand years of enormous and…
— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) October 12, 2024
López Obrador’s successor, Claudia Sheinbaum, encouraged Spain this Saturday to use October 12, which in Mexico is now celebrated as the Indigenous Resistance Dayto begin with the public apology to the native Mexican peoples for the abuses of the conquest.
This after the Mexican president did not invite Felipe VI to her investiture last week for not responding to the letter that López Obrador sent her in 2019.
