The King Fosters Harmony at the Discord Congress

King Felipe VI fostered harmony this Wednesday at the discord congress. His presence at the 10th Spanish Language Congress (CILE) in Arequipa was soothing and brought calm to turbulent waters by appealing for understanding and collaboration. The event, which should be the grand celebration of Spanish, had turned into a bitter disagreement marked by discord in the preceding days. The King wished for it to be "a conversation about what unites, not what divides," making our language "an instrument of progress, understanding, prosperity, peace, and consensus."

"From Arequipa, Peru, and in Spanish, we send a message of harmony to the world; in this 'good language', which, in the words of Andrés Bello, is a providential means of communication and a bond of fraternity among the various nations of Spanish origin spread over the two continents," stated King Felipe during his speech at the solemn inaugural session of the 10th CILE.

For the conciliatory monarch, the congress "speaks to us of the future: of how we can give our language an even more strategic focus, helping us project our voice over an uncertain global landscape." "It is a valuable lesson in times when we constantly hear about competition, rivalry, disconnection, resurgence of blocs... about interests and not cooperation," said the head of state.

Both the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) and the Cervantes Institute tacitly appreciated the monarch's gesture, whose presence in Arequipa had been uncertain until a few days before the CILE's opening, reinforcing Spain's international presence and the language that unites more than 600 million people. "This meeting is also – and beyond, even, of the language – an example of a community of values: a conversation about what unites, not what divides," the King celebrated.

The solemn and marathon session was held at the Municipal Theatre of the birth city of Mario Vargas Llosa, the central figure of the congress, which pays tribute to the Peruvian-Spanish writer, academic, and Nobel laureate, who passed away last April and whom King Felipe praised extensively.

For the King, it is "a great honour" to participate in the opening of the CILE "in the white city where Mario Vargas Llosa spent his first year of life." He said this hours after visiting the Nobel laureate's family home, who "being a writer and citizen of the world, never ceased to consider himself proudly Arequipean."

"This is an ideal place to celebrate the Spanish language. Because our language is for us, Spanish speakers, what Arequipa was for Vargas Llosa: the family home, a space of more than 600 million speakers, fertile in communication, science, literary creation, ideas, projects," said the King. "The house we have built together and today is nourished by brotherhood and culture for that better future we long for," he noted, appealing to diplomacy, "so necessary in a time when our language must serve to seek peace and promote consensus."

"Let us continue making our language an instrument of progress, understanding, shared prosperity," wished the monarch. "May we know and want to direct our efforts towards that goal," concluded King Felipe, who previously highlighted the three pillars of the Congress: mestizaje and interculturality, clear and accessible language, and digital cultures and AI. These topics were also addressed by writers Javier Cercas and Jorge Gabriel Vasquez, who participated in the lengthy event attended by the Spanish Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun.

Luis García Montero, who had previously stirred conflict, did not add fuel to the fire this time. Nor did the director of the RAE, Santiago Muñoz Machado, who maintained an impeccable institutional profile, not directly responding to García Montero's barbed comments, opting for a neutral and non-confrontational speech.

Upon his arrival in Arequipa, the Spanish monarch was not received by José Jerí, the new head of state of Peru, a country mired in a severe political crisis, the latest in a series, following the ousting of President Dina Boluarte days before the CILE's opening. The Peruvian president was also absent from the solemn inaugural session of the CILE. Around the Arequipa theatre, there was a massive security presence, with the centre of the white city fortified against protests against Jerí, who is embroiled in several scandals, including a rape accusation that was dismissed.