The five nations of Central America have not always been the most cooperative of neighbors over the years. But for the first two weeks of every September, the countries put aside their political differences and border squabbles to join in celebrating the isthmus’ independence from Spain in 1821. It is one of few things all the countries can agree on.

The September 15 Independence Day parades through the capitals and major cities of Central America are family events, geared mostly toward the young and the nostalgic elderly.

High school students, dressed in their pressed school uniforms and recently shined shoes march with their school mates, some holding banners or twirling batons and others playing in the marching band. Younger children attend the parades with their parents as spectators, waving balloons and flags as they wait to catch glimpses of their older brothers and sisters march by.

The September 15 celebrations really begin in early August, when student bands begin to meet every Saturday morning in their schoolyards to practice songs and marching in formation.

Surprisingly, the students don’t seem to mind attending school on weekends, as the Saturday sessions usually are conducted more like pep-rallies and social events, rather than marching drills.

The practices make it difficult to sleep in on Saturdays, as the sounds of un-syncopated snare drums and trombones can be heard in most neighborhoods in the early morning hours of August and September.

Students aren’t the only ones preparing for the regional celebration. One of the newer traditional highlights of the independence celebrations is the running of the Central American Freedom Torch from Guatemala to Costa Rica – a reenactment of the messengers who brought the word of independence to the various Central American provinces belonging to Spain’s Capitanía of Guatemala 183years ago.

The annual running of the torch became a tradition 40 years ago, after the Pan-American Highway was completed. (It took the original message bearers a month to bring the word of independence through the jungles of Central America to Costa Rica, which was deeply divided on the sovereignty issue at the time.)
The torch starts in Guatemala on September 1 and spends an average of three or four days traversing each country, passing through the hands of hundreds of thousands of Central American school children, politicians and national celebrities before arriving in Costa Rica on September 14.

In some countries, such as Nicaragua, the Freedom Torch stops temporarily in each department capital to light other torches, which are then run to the far corners of each rural municipality.

When the torch finally arrives at Costa Rica’s colonial capital of Cartago each year on September 14 at 6 p.m., the whole of the country goes out onto the street to sing the national anthem, with the expatriate community fumbling and lip-syncing their way through the tricky lyrics. After the singing/butchering of the national anthem, Costa Ricans of all ages flow out into the darkened streets for a paper-lantern parade.

The sight of groups walking down the darkened streets in silence carrying homemade lanterns has in incongruous effect of a candlelight peace vigil mixed with a colonial-era witch-hunt.
Parents and grandparents enjoy this opportunity to pass on their appreciation of independence as they proudly walk the streets arm-in-arm with their children, raising their colorful cellophane lanterns.

The following day, on September 15, all Central American countries join in celebration. It is time for the students to strut their stuff, men to pop their beers, and presidents and politicians to deliver windy speeches.

While the basic ingredients of the annual Independence Day celebrations are the same every year, the mood and expression of the event has changed with the times. The evolution of the celebration is perhaps most dramatic in Nicaragua, where the concept of independence has been interpreted differently by each government.

During the U.S.-propped Somoza dictatorship, Independence Day was a solemn and formal event, with women in big dresses and student bands – known as “war bands” at the time – performing U.S. military hymns. When the revolutionary Sandinista National Liberation Front took power in 1979, the celebrations became political and anti-imperialist in nature. U.S. military hymns were replaced by Nicaraguan songs. Today, the celebration is more of a carnival-like event.

Nicaraguan poet Jimmy Avilés laments, “We have still not found a way to celebrate the day properly as Nicaraguans. It is an expression that we have still not defined ourselves as a country.”

The Liberty Torch illuminates Central America in September. Its magical glow unites nations and builds hope during this celebration spanning five countries with contagious patriotic partying to which all citizens of the world are invited.

By Tim Rogers
Photos Walter Rojas