Colombian and Palestinian Embassies in Chile Launch Photo Exhibition «Palestine Resists»

Original article: Embajadas de Colombia y Palestina en Chile inauguran exposición fotográfica «Palestina Resiste»

On Tuesday, the 28th, the «PALESTINE RESISTS» photographic exhibition was inaugurated at the Palestinian Club. The event, which lasted about two hours, was a collaborative effort between the embassies of Palestine and Colombia in Chile.

This exhibition showcases the work of Colombian photographer Mauricio Morales Duarte, who has documented the continuous aggression against the Palestinian people in Gaza (2014) and the West Bank (2023–2025).

Morales Duarte is a Colombian photographer and journalist who has covered armed conflicts in countries such as Syria, Iraq, Libya, Palestine, Colombia, Ukraine, Armenia, Lebanon, and Turkey. His work focuses on documenting human rights violations, exile, and the resulting social conflicts.

For the creator, the visual documentation only brushes the surface of decades of violence perpetrated by Israel in the West Bank, as well as the resilience and adaptability of the Palestinian people in all its forms.

“More than a thousand Palestinians have been killed since October 7, 2023, by settlers and Israeli occupation forces, not counting those who have lost their lives during decades of occupation in the West Bank. Additionally, thousands have been captured and remain, in many cases, without sentencing in Israeli state prisons.”

According to the Colombian Ambassador to Chile, Sebastián Guanumen Parra, Mauricio Morales Duarte’s work is a source of national pride. He emphasized that drawing from his own country’s history, the photographer has skillfully transformed pain into awareness and images into testimonies—depicting the struggles of various peoples seeking justice and peace. In his words, art becomes a historical mandate capable of keeping collective memory alive.

“Through his sensitive and courageous lens, we will witness a reality that the world observes in real time, sometimes with helplessness and at other times with indifference; however, a reality that can no longer be ignored. His images challenge us and remind us that empathy is a form of resistance, that facing suffering is the first step toward justice and an end to violence,” he stated.

Besides Guanumen, the event featured the Palestinian Ambassador in Chile, Vera Baboun, whom Guanumen publicly thanked for her presence, highlighting that her “voice and leadership have contributed to keeping alive the hope of the Palestinian people in Chile.”

The event was also attended by Colombia’s Vice Chancellor for Multilateral Affairs, Mauricio Jaramillo Jassir, of Palestinian descent, who over the years has made the Palestinian issue a priority in his discourse. He has repeatedly stated that he understands the Palestinian cause is not an isolated matter, but one of shared principles among peoples who have suffered colonization, external interventions, imperialism, and wars.

In that same vein, the Colombian ambassador noted that the event called for a cause that transcends borders, beliefs, and nationalities: the defense of what makes us human, of dignity, and of life itself.

“The exhibition ‘Palestine Resists’ is more than a photographic showcase; it is a visual testimony of the strength of the Palestinian people who, despite occupation, genocide, and barbarism, have never relinquished their right to dream and live in freedom,” he declared.

Guanumen emphasized that Colombia has experienced the ravages of violence from a conflict that spans more than seven decades. “Therefore, aware of what the conflict represents, from the Colombian Embassy in Chile we transform our words into actions and pay tribute to the Palestinian people, their cause, and the respect for the human rights of every Palestinian, particularly their right to recognition and self-determination,” he stated.

He concluded, “Colombia reaffirms its solidarity with the Palestinian people and their inalienable right to live in freedom, with dignity, coexisting in peace and security with other states.

May this exhibition inspire us to continue defending the truth and to remember that the true revolution arises from a love for life.”