Opinion The Third Edit: Why royals are the OG nepo babies

It wasn’t me,” apart from being a hit song about getting away with adultery, is also the essence of privilege, the refrain of those who still reap the fruits of exploitation of years past. The upper-caste rich boy in India, the wealthy White male in the US, and the conservative Englishman who celebrates the Raj — each, when confronted with the idea of historical injustice and the advantages it has given them, echo Shaggy. But the kings of all unearned privilege, the OG Nepo Babies are, tautologically (and accurately) kings. King Felipe VI, monarch of Spain, is at the centre of a diplomatic row between his country and Mexico over a letter and an invite.

The Spanish government is angry because its royal head of state has not been invited to the swearing-in ceremony of Claudia Sheinbaum as Mexico’s first woman president on October 1. Mexico has, however, invited Spain’s elected PM Pedro Sanchez. The reason for the slight is that Felipe has not even replied to a letter — as best diplomatic practice requires, according to the president-elect — written by Sheinbaum’s predecessor in 2019 asking him to apologise for “crimes of conquest”. Spain conquered large parts of South America in the 15th and 16th centuries, accompanied by atrocities against indigenous people. In response to the letter, the Spanish foreign ministry said, “The arrival of the Spanish on Mexican soil 500 years ago cannot be judged in the light of contemporary considerations.”

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Judging the atrocities of history by contemporary standards is indeed a fraught exercise. Guilt, after all, is not passed on. Wealth and entitlement, though, can be. Felipe may not be culpable for colonialism or even feudalism. But he can certainly answer a letter, acknowledge that injustices were committed. Of course, it’s easier to say, “it wasn’t me”.