Costa Rica is known for having the oldest democracy in Latin America, having been established continuously since the 1950s. More importantly, it is one of the few countries without a permanent military force. Today they are under a presidential constitutional republic, led by Laura Chinchilla, who has been president since 2010. Costa Rica is located in Central America, between Nicaragua (north) and Panama (southeast). Christopher Columbus visited it for the first time during his fourth and final voyage to the New World. Its conqueror was Juan Vasquez Coronado, a pacifist who won the trust of the natives of the area. Costa Rica, or Costa Ricca, took its name from Gil Gonzales Davila from the gold bands that the natives wore around their noses at the time of colonization (Costa Rica - History and Culture). For this colony, independence came almost instantly as it was not forced by any war. Spain had left this part of the colonies alone while it concentrated on minerals from Peru and Mexico. Since both Peru and Mexico wanted their independence at the time, Spain was using most of its resources to fight them, leaving them no capital to take care of Central America. As a result, it was easier for the Central American colonies to declare independence because it was already a reality for them. Since then Costa Rica was known for its tolerant attitude as whites, creoles, Spaniards, blacks and Indians coexisted without problems. In 1823, at the time of independence, Costa Rica joined the Federal Republic of Central America with Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua (La Federacion Del Centro De America). The president of all the providences, the so-called federal government, was Francisco Morazán, a liberal. As president of the provinces...... middle of paper......eguatemala.com/centroamericahis.html>."Biography of Oscar Arias Sánchez." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television and Web. December 12, 2013. .Rankin, Monica A. The Story of Costa Rica. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood, an imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC, 2012. Print.Tirmenstein, Lisa. "Costa Rica in 1856: Defeating William Walker while creating a national identity." Costa Rica in 1856: Defeating William Walker while creating a national identity. Np, nd Web. 12 Dec. 2013. “United Provinces of Central America (Historical Federation of Central America).” Encyclopedia Britannica online. Encyclopedia Britannica, nd Web. 10 December. 2013. .