President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum inaugurated the Jaguar National Park in Tulum, Quintana Roo, in a private ceremony held on Saturday during López Obrador’s last working visit to the Yucatán peninsula.

Government officials involved in the park’s construction, including Quintana Roo Governor Mara Lezama, attended the inaugural event.

¡Esto es el Parque del Jaguar: patrimonio natural e histórico de Tulum, que el mundo merece conocer! 🐆 🏝🌊 🌎

#UnidosParaTransformar pic.twitter.com/u4aSgSMmNi

— Mara Lezama (@MaraLezama) September 7, 2024

In a statement, Lezama thanked López Obrador for their joint work in restoring “dignity and respect to native cultures,” particularly to the Maya, who Lezama described as “the living legacy of [our] civilization.”

The Jaguar Park spans nearly 2,250 hectares and encompasses protected natural areas such as beaches, forests, the Tulum Archaeological Zone and the Tulum National Park. The area is home to at least 966 species of flora and fauna, including 60 endemic species that can not be found elsewhere. 

With an investment of US $133.9 million, the park began construction in 2022 and was originally scheduled to be operational by February. 

The park also houses the Museum of the East Coast, which delves into the history of the Mexican Caribbean from the Late Pleistocene (40,000-10,000 B.C.) to the rise of the Maya (1,800 B.C.-250 A.D.), including their archaeological past, their encounters with European cultures and their present.

According to the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the museum is the largest of the cultural offerings along the Maya Train route. It features 1,200 square meters of museum space, over 300 original pieces and 50 reproductions. Most of the pieces have been sourced from INAH facilities such as the National Museum of Anthropology, the Maya Museum of Cancún and archaeological zones across Quintana Roo, Campeche and Yucatan. 

At the ceremony, head of the INAH Diego Prieto Hernández said that the opening of the Jaguar Park is proof that the Maya Train is more than just a railway project. “We’re standing before a vindication of the Mexican southeast and the Yucatán peninsula,” he said. “The Maya Train is justice and balanced development, it is progress with equality and the recovery of historical memory.”

During the event, President López Obrador emphasized that these works will further enhance Tulum, and called on people to take care of nature, the jungle, the beaches and the archaeological sites.  

Addressing his upcoming end of term, López Obrador stated that he feels satisfied with his time in office because he has fulfilled his duties and set the foundations of the so-called “fourth transformation,” which Sheinbaum has pledged to follow.

Later on Saturday, López Obrador and Sheinbaum also inaugurated the Historical Museum of the City of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, near Tulum. 

With reports from La Jornada Maya, La Jornada, El Economista and Proceso