“被遗忘的角落”:哥斯达黎加早期华侨史初探

“A Forgotten Corner”:The Preliminary Study on Overseas Chinese History of Early Years in Costa Rica

哥斯达黎加早期华侨史是国内拉美华侨史研究的一个"被遗忘的角落"。自1855年到1874年间,来到哥斯达黎加的中国人主要是契约华工,他们的数量虽少,但其遭遇折射出近代拉美华工的苦难史,是拉美华侨整体史不可或缺的一部分。泮打连埠的"唐人街"形成于19世纪末期,是哥斯达黎加最早的华侨社区,以广东香山(中山)籍华商为主,该华侨社区在中华会馆领导下,成为一个有组织、有领导的社会,即使在排华逆境中也能自强自立。哥国华侨自1897年以来遭受当地种族歧视和排斥的不公平待遇,1911年清政府派出了谭培森作为"中华帝国特别专使"访问中美洲国家包括哥国,以调查侨情,也显示其护侨之心。此行产生一定的外交压力,但并不能改变哥国政府的排华政策大局。普遍来看,美洲国家的排华运动,在很大程度上激发了华侨民族主义的兴起,他们日益认识到中国强大对于护侨的重要意义。

The overseas Chinese history of early years in Costa Rica is a"forgotten corner"in the Latin-American Overseas Chinese studies in China.The first Chinese people who arrived in Costa Rica were the contract labors,Although the number of the Chinese labors from 1855 to 1874 was relatively small,yet their suffering and misfortune reflects the common shared history of the overseas Chinese in Latin-America during that period of time and it should be regarded as an integral part of total history of Latin-American overseas Chinese.The Chinatown in Puntarenas,taking shape in late 19 th century,was the first Chinese community in Costa Rica.The community,mainly made up of the Cantonese merchants from Xiangshan(Zhongshan)prefecture,was well-organized under the leadership of"Chung Wah",the Chinese Association,which helped the Chinese immigrants survive and develop in the anti-Chinese environment.Since 1897,the Chinese immigrants in Costa Rica had witnessed a difficult time of racial discrimination and exclusion.Until 1911,the imperial Chinese government sent its special commissioner Tam Pui Shum to visit Central America for the first time,investigating on the actual situation of the Chinese in those countries on the one hand,manifesting its will to protect its subjects on the other.Tam’s visit to Costa Rica had produced pressuring effects,but not enough for the Costa Rican government to change its anti-Chinese policies.The hostile movement against Chinese widely spread in America had aroused to a great extent the overseas Chinese nationalism.They were increasingly aware of the importance of China’s power to protect their interests.