In 1901, the president Ascensión Esquivel Ibarra closed the country to all non-white immigrants. All Black, Chinese, Arab, Turkish or Gypsy migration to the country was banned. After the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, a large influx of Republican refugees settled in the country, mostly Castilians, Galicians, and Asturians, as well as later Chilean, Mexican and Colombian migrants who would arrive escaping from war or dictatorships, as Costa Rica is the longest running democracy in Latin America.
In 1901, the president Ascensión Esquivel Ibarra closed the country to all non-white immigrants. All Black, Chinese, Arab, Turkish or Gypsy migration to the country was banned. After the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, a large influx of Republican refugees settled in the country, mostly Castilians, Galicians, and Asturians, as well as later Chilean, Mexican and Colombian migrants who would arrive escaping from war or dictatorships, as Costa Rica is the longest running democracy in Latin America.