New Mexico conquistador statue reinstallation stopped after protests

Ixchel Topete and her mother Soula Topete arrange an altar in front of a concrete platform where authorities had planned to reinstall a statue of conquistador Juan de Onate but postponed the event after protests, at the Rio Arriba County Complex in Espanola, New Mexico, U.S., September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Andrew Hay

ESPANOLA, New Mexico (Reuters) - A New Mexico county halted the reinstallation of a 16th-century Spanish conquistador statue on Wednesday after protests over the return of the bronze figure, removed three years ago during nationwide anti-racism demonstrations.

The northern county of Rio Arriba postponed a Thursday reinstatement ceremony after activists occupied a concrete pedestal in the city of Espanola, where the statue of Juan de Onate was set to be placed.