A document addressed to Congress in support of Ángela Acuña Braun in her fight for women’s suffrage; documents on laws related to the Family Code, the Constitutional Hall, and the naturalization of the country’s Afro-descendant community are among the items that will be exhibited at the Legislative Assembly starting this August 5, in the exhibition titled “Where Laws are Born.”

This historical journey is offered through a collaborative process between the Ministry of Culture and Youth, via the National Archive, and the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica.

Thematically, the exhibition presents a general introduction that explains the functioning and importance of the Legislative Assembly’s work and is divided into eight thematic areas: Functions and Powers of the Legislative Assembly, Historical Background of the Legislative Branch, Construction of the Modern State, The Parliament’s Role in Social Achievements, The Abolition of the Army and the Second Republic, Major Legislative Milestones of the 20th and 21st Centuries, Representation and Diversity in the Legislative Assembly, and finally, Democracy and Recognitions.

In each of these thematic areas, visitors will find historical documents from both the Legislative Assembly and the National Archive, highlighting relevant moments in the work of the Legislative Assembly throughout its two centuries of existence.

The exhibition consists of panels and reproductions of documents that the public can handle, such as the Fundamental Law of the State of Costa Rica of 1825, the Political Constitution issued by the Constituent Congress in 1871, the File on the banana strike in the Atlantic Zone, the Political Constitution of Costa Rica of 1949, the Law of Indigenous Registration and Identification (No. 7225), among others.

“This exhibition seeks to pay tribute to the 200 years of Costa Rica’s legislative history, not only through its laws but also through the cultural, social, and human impact it has had on the construction of our democracy. It is an opportunity to bring new generations closer to the institutional legacy that has sustained our republican life in peace,” stated the Minister of Culture and Youth, Jorge Rodríguez Vives.

According to the vice president of the Legislative Directory, Deputy Vanessa de Paul Castro Mora, “the Legislative Assembly celebrates its 200 years by reaffirming its commitment to history and to the citizenry. The ‘Where Laws are Born’ exhibition is an invitation for the public to learn how the legal framework that has shaped our democracy is built and how the Legislative Branch has been a protagonist in the social, political, and economic evolution of Costa Rica in a responsible manner.”

Symbolic Handover of Documents

During the exhibition’s inauguration ceremony, the Department of Document Management and Archives of the Legislative Assembly delivered a series of historical documents to the National Archive. These included the 1972 appeal to the United States Government to suspend all military action in Vietnam, Volume 1 of the minutes of the 1949 National Constituent Assembly, the Declaration of Honorary Citizenship for Dr. Franklin Chang Diaz, and the Declaration of Nullity of the 1948 presidential elections.

Regarding this, the legislative vice president indicated that “we are filled with pride by the symbolic handover of documents to the National Archive, reflecting the Legislative Assembly’s commitment to the conservation of and access to information of historical value for future generations.”

For her part, Ivannia Valverde Guevara, director-general of the National Archive, affirmed that “this exhibition allows us to appreciate the construction of the Costa Rican legal framework as a pillar of life in a democracy.”

The exhibition will become a traveling exhibit after it leaves the Blue Castle, with the participation of the country’s municipalities and other interested entities.

This journey through the 200-year history of the Congress will be available to the public in Building C (the Blue Castle) of the legislative complex until October 31, 2025. Access will be through guided tours organized by the Congress’s Department of Citizen Participation. These will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays, for the general public, at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Those interested can reserve their spot by emailing mbarrionuevo@asamblea.go.cr.