Jorge Ubíco, who rises to power in Guatemala in 1931 after running unopposed, relies primarily on the secret police and informers to enforce and maintain his authoritarian government. There are severe restrictions on public criticism and the press.

On October 7, 1938, the government revises the liberal naturalization law of January 25, 1936, and seven months later bans all political activity by foreigners in Guatemala, aiming to thwart the activities of National Socialists who are suspected of wanting to split off into a German colony. In September 1939, Guatemala immediately declares its neutrality, although Ubíco nurtures sympathies for Hitler and fascism. Ultimately, Guatemala’s dependence on the US leads to the internment of Reich Germans still in the country and to the confiscation of their property.

In 1933 the first Jewish refugees from Germany arrive. Their life in exile proves to be quite difficult: In 1934, attacks on Jewish pupils increase so much that many parents withdraw their children from school. Only in November 1938, after the pan-Germanic anti-Jewish pogrom, do additional refugees arrive in Guatemala.

At the Évian conference, the Central-American states Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama explain their position in common statements.