Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the
President of Argentina
The president of Argentina ( es, Presidente de Argentina), officially known as the president of the Argentine Nation ( es, Presidente de la Nación Argentina), is both head of state and head of government of Argentina. Under Constitution of Ar ...
from 1989 to 1999. Ideologically, he identified as a
Peronist
Peronism, also called justicialism,. The Justicialist Party is the main Peronist party in Argentina, it derives its name from the concept of social justice., name=, group= is an Argentine political movement based on the ideas and legacy of Ar ...
and supported
economically liberal
Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalis ...
policies. He led Argentina as president during the 1990s and implemented a
free market
In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any o ...
liberalization
Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used m ...
. He served as President of the
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party ( es, Partido Justicialista, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism.
Current president Alberto Fernández belongs to the Justicialist Party (and has, since 2021, served ...
for thirteen years (from 1990 to 2001 and again from 2001 to 2003), and his political approach became known as
Federal Peronism
Federal Peronism ( es, Peronismo Federal), also known as Dissident Peronism ( es, Peronismo Disidente) and Menemism ( es, Menemismo), are the informal names given to a Conservatism, conservative political alliance between Justicialist Party f ...
.
Born in
Anillaco to a
Syrian
Syrians ( ar, سُورِيُّون, ''Sūriyyīn'') are an Eastern Mediterranean ethnic group indigenous to the Levant. They share common Levantine Semitic roots. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend of both indi ...
family, Menem was raised as a Muslim,
["Carlos Menem"](_blank)
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' but later converted to
Roman Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
to pursue a political career. Menem became a
Peronist
Peronism, also called justicialism,. The Justicialist Party is the main Peronist party in Argentina, it derives its name from the concept of social justice., name=, group= is an Argentine political movement based on the ideas and legacy of Ar ...
during a visit to Buenos Aires. He led the party in his home province of
La Rioja
La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and N ...
and was elected governor in 1973. He was deposed and detained during the
1976 Argentine coup d'état
The 1976 Argentine coup d'état was a right-wing coup d'état, coup that overthrew Isabel Perón as President of Argentina on 24 March 1976. A military junta was installed to replace her; this was headed by Lieutenant General Jorge Rafael Videl ...
and was elected governor again in 1983. He defeated the Buenos Aires governor
Antonio Cafiero
Antonio Francisco Cafiero (12 September 1922 – 13 October 2014) was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. Cafiero held a number of important posts throughout his career, including, most notably, the governorship of Buenos Aires Province f ...
in the primary elections for the
1989 presidential elections.
Hyperinflation
In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
and riots forced outgoing president
Raúl Alfonsín
Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín (12 March 1927 – 31 March 2009) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1983 to 8 July 1989. He was the first democratically elected president after more than ...
to resign early, shortening the presidential transition.
Menem supported the
Washington Consensus
The Washington Consensus is a set of ten economic policy prescriptions considered to constitute the "standard" reform package promoted for crisis-wracked developing countries by Washington, D.C.-based institutions such as the International Monet ...
and tackled inflation with the
Convertibility plan
The Convertibility plan was a plan by the Argentine Currency Board that pegged the Argentine peso to the U.S. dollar between 1991 and 2002 in an attempt to eliminate hyperinflation and stimulate economic growth. While it initially met with cons ...
in 1991. The plan was complemented by a series of
privatization
Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
s and was initially a success. Argentina re-established diplomatic relations with the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, suspended since the 1982
Falklands War
The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
, and developed special relations with the United States. The country suffered two terrorist attacks. The Peronist victory in the 1993 midterm elections allowed him to persuade Alfonsín (by then leader of the opposition party
UCR) to sign the
Pact of Olivos
The Olivos Pact ( es, Pacto de Olivos) refers to a series of documents signed on November 17, 1993, between the governing President of Argentina, President of Argentina, Carlos Menem, and former President and leader of the opposition Radical Civic ...
for the
1994 amendment of the Argentine Constitution. This amendment allowed Menem to run for re-election in
1995
File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, which he won. A new economic crisis began, and the opposing parties formed a political coalition winning the
1997 midterm elections and the
1999 presidential election.
He was investigated on various criminal and corruption charges, including
illegal arms trafficking
Arms trafficking or gunrunning is the illicit trade of contraband small arms and ammunition, which constitutes part of a broad range of illegal activities often associated with transnational criminal organizations. The illegal trade of small arm ...
(he was sentenced to seven years in prison),
embezzlement of public funds (he was sentenced four and half years to prison),
extortion
Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...
and
bribery
Bribery is the Offer and acceptance, offering, Gift, giving, Offer and acceptance, receiving, or Solicitation, soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official, or other person, in charge of a public or legal duty. With reg ...
(in both of which he was declared innocent). His position as senator earned him immunity from incarceration.
Menem ran for the presidency again in
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
, but faced with a likely defeat in a
ballotage
The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...
against
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007, Governor of Santa Cruz Province from 1991 to 2003, Secretary General of UNASUR and ...
, he chose to pull out, effectively handing the presidency to Kirchner. He was elected senator for La Rioja in 2005. By the time of his death in 2021 at age 90, he was the oldest living former Argentine president. He is regarded as a polarizing figure in Argentina, mostly due to corruption and economic mismanagement throughout his Presidency.
Early life and education
Carlos Saúl Menem was born on 2 July 1930 in
Anillaco, a small town in the mountainous north of
La Rioja Province, Argentina. His parents, Saúl Menem and Mohibe Akil, were
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
n nationals from
Yabroud
Yabroud or Yabrud ( ar, يَبْرُود, Yabrūd) is a city in Syria, located in the ''Rif Dimashq'' (i.e. Damascus' countryside) governorate about north of the capital Damascus. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Yab ...
who had
emigrated to Argentina. He attended elementary and high school in La Rioja, and joined a basketball team during his university studies. He visited
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
in 1951 with the team, and met the president
Juan Perón
Juan Domingo Perón (, , ; 8 October 1895 – 1 July 1974) was an Argentine Army general and politician. After serving in several government positions, including Minister of Labour and Vice President of a military dictatorship, he was elected P ...
and his wife
Eva Perón
María Eva Duarte de Perón (; ; 7 May 1919 – 26 July 1952), better known as just Eva Perón or by the nickname Evita (), was an Argentine politician, activist, actress, and philanthropist who served as First Lady of Argentina from June 194 ...
. This influenced Menem to become a
Peronist
Peronism, also called justicialism,. The Justicialist Party is the main Peronist party in Argentina, it derives its name from the concept of social justice., name=, group= is an Argentine political movement based on the ideas and legacy of Ar ...
. He studied law at the
National University of Córdoba
The National University of Córdoba ( es, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba,) is an institution of higher education in the city of Córdoba, Argentina.
Founded in 1613, the university is the oldest in Argentina, the third oldest university of t ...
, graduating in 1955.
After President Juan Perón's
overthrow in 1955, Menem was briefly incarcerated. He later joined the successor to the Peronist Party, the
Justicialist Party
The Justicialist Party ( es, Partido Justicialista, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism.
Current president Alberto Fernández belongs to the Justicialist Party (and has, since 2021, served ...
''(Partido Justicialista)'' (PJ). He was elected president of its La Rioja Province chapter in 1973. In that capacity, he was included in the flight to Spain that brought Perón back to Argentina after his long
exile
Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
. According to the Peronist politician
Juan Manuel Abal Medina
Juan Manuel Abal Medina (born March 1, 1945) is an Argentine journalist and politician who served as Secretary General of the Peronist Movement between 1972 and 1974. He later became a prominent lawyer in Mexico.
Early life and entry into polit ...
, Menem played no special part in the event.
Governor of La Rioja
1st term (1973–1976) and arrest
Menem was elected governor of La Rioja in 1973 when the
proscription
Proscription ( la, proscriptio) is, in current usage, a 'decree of condemnation to death or banishment' (''Oxford English Dictionary'') and can be used in a political context to refer to state-approved murder or banishment. The term originated ...
of Peronism was lifted. He was
deposed
Deposition by political means concerns the removal of a politician or monarch.
ORB: The Online Reference for Med ...
during the
1976 Argentine coup d'état
The 1976 Argentine coup d'état was a right-wing coup d'état, coup that overthrew Isabel Perón as President of Argentina on 24 March 1976. A military junta was installed to replace her; this was headed by Lieutenant General Jorge Rafael Videl ...
that overthrew President
Isabel Perón
Isabel Martínez de Perón (, born María Estela Martínez Cartas, 4 February 1931), also known as Isabelita, is an Argentine politician who served as President of Argentina from 1974 to 1976. She was one of the first female republican heads ...
. He was accused of corruption and having links with the guerrillas of the
Dirty War
The Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina ( es, dictadura cívico-militar de Argentina, links=no) for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 a ...
. He was detained on 25 March, kept for a week at a local barracks, and then moved to a temporary prison on the ship ''33 Orientales'' in Buenos Aires. He was detained alongside former ministers
Antonio Cafiero
Antonio Francisco Cafiero (12 September 1922 – 13 October 2014) was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. Cafiero held a number of important posts throughout his career, including, most notably, the governorship of Buenos Aires Province f ...
,
Jorge Taiana
Jorge Enrique Taiana (born 31 May 1950) is an Argentine Justicialist Party politician, currently serving as the country's Minister of Defense, since 10 August 2021. Taiana previously served as Foreign Minister in the administrations of President ...
, Miguel Unamuno, José Deheza, and Pedro Arrighi, the unionists Jorge Triaca, Diego Ibáñez, and
Lorenzo Miguel
Lorenzo Miguel (March 27, 1927 - December 29, 2002) was a prominent Argentine labor leader closely associated with the steelworkers' union.
Life and times Early life and his rise in the UOM
Lorenzo Marcelo Miguel was born and raised in the workin ...
, the diplomat Jorge Vázquez, the journalist Osvaldo Papaleo, and the former president
Raúl Lastiri
Raúl Alberto Lastiri (11 September 1915 – 11 December 1978) was an Argentine politician who was interim president of Argentina from July 13, 1973 until October 12, 1973. Lastiri, who presided over the Argentine Chamber of Deputies, was promo ...
. He shared a cell with Pedro Eladio Vázquez, Juan Perón's personal physician. During this time he helped the chaplain Lorenzo Lavalle, despite still being a
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
.
In July he was sent to
Magdalena, to a permanent prison. His wife Zulema visited him every week, but rejected his conversion to
Roman Catholicism
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
. His mother died during the time he was a prisoner, and dictator
Jorge Rafael Videla
Jorge Rafael Videla (; ; 2 August 1925 – 17 May 2013) was an Argentine military officer and dictator, Commander in Chief of the Army, member of the Military Junta, and ''de facto'' President of Argentina from 29 March 1976 to 29 March 1981. H ...
denied his request to attend her funeral. He was released on 29 July 1978, on the condition that he live in a city outside his home province without leaving it. He settled in
Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" is a s ...
.
Menem met Admiral
Eduardo Massera
Emilio Eduardo Massera (19 October 1925 – 8 November 2010) was an Argentine Naval military officer, and a leading participant in the Argentine coup d'état of 1976. In 1981, he was found to be a member of P2 (also known as ''Propaganda Due'' ...
, who intended to run for president, and had public meetings with personalities such as
Carlos Monzón
Carlos Roque Monzón (7 August 1942 – 8 January 1995), nicknamed Escopeta (''Shotgun'' in Spanish), was an Argentine professional boxer who held the undisputed world middleweight championship for 7 years. He successfully defended his title 14 ...
,
Susana Giménez
María Susana Giménez Aubert (born 29 January 1944), known as Susana Giménez (), is an Argentine TV host, actress, model and businesswoman. In 2012, she was considered the biggest celebrity in Argentine television by the media firm that pub ...
, and
Alberto Olmedo
Alberto Olmedo (24 August 1933 – 5 March 1988) was an Argentine comedian and actor, popularly regarded as one of the most important comedians in the history of his country, for his outstanding work in television, cinema and theater.
Olmedo ...
. As a result, he was forced to reside in another city,
Tandil
Tandil is the main city of the homonymous Partidos of Buenos Aires, partido (department), located in Argentina, in the southeast of Buenos Aires Province, just north-northwest of Tandilia hills. The city was founded in 1823 and its name originate ...
. He had to report daily to Chief of Police Hugo Zamora. This forced residence was lifted in February 1980. He returned to Buenos Aires, and then to La Rioja. He resumed his political activities, despite the prohibition, and was detained again. His new forced residence was in
Las Lomitas in the province of
Formosa
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...
. He was one of the last politicians to be released from prison by the
National Reorganization Process
The National Reorganization Process (Spanish: ''Proceso de Reorganización Nacional'', often simply ''el Proceso'', "the Process") was the military dictatorship that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983, in which it was supported by the United Sta ...
.
2nd and 3rd terms (1983–1989)
Military rule ended in 1983, and the
Radical
Radical may refer to:
Politics and ideology Politics
*Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change
*Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and ...
Raúl Alfonsín
Raúl Ricardo Alfonsín (12 March 1927 – 31 March 2009) was an Argentine lawyer and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1983 to 8 July 1989. He was the first democratically elected president after more than ...
was elected president. Menem ran for governor again and was elected by a clear margin. The province benefited from tax regulations established by the military, which allowed increased industrial growth. His party gained control of the provincial legislature, and he was re-elected in 1987 with 63% of the vote. The Partido Justicialista at the time was divided into two factions, the conservatives that still supported the political doctrines of Juan and Isabel Perón, and those who proposed a renovation of the party. The internal disputes ceased in 1987. Menem, with his prominent victory in his district, was one of the leading figures of the party and disputed its leadership.
Presidential elections
Antonio Cafiero
Antonio Francisco Cafiero (12 September 1922 – 13 October 2014) was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. Cafiero held a number of important posts throughout his career, including, most notably, the governorship of Buenos Aires Province f ...
, who had been elected
governor of Buenos Aires Province
The Governor of Buenos Aires Province ( es, Gobernador de la Provincia de Buenos Aires) is a citizen of the Buenos Aires Province of Argentina, holding the office of governor for the corresponding period. The governor is elected alongside a vic ...
, led the renewal of the Partido Justicialista, and was considered their most likely candidate for the presidency. Menem, on the other hand, was seen as a
populist
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
leader. Using a
big tent
A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party's policy of permitting or encouraging a broad spectrum of views among its members. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined i ...
approach, he got support from several unrelated political figures. As a result, he defeated Cafiero in the primary elections. He sought alliances with
Bunge and Born
Bunge & Born was a multinational corporation based in Buenos Aires, Argentina, whose diverse interests included food processing and international trade in grains and oilseeds. It is now known as Bunge Limited.
History
Bunge & Born was founded in ...
, union leaders, former members of
Montoneros
Montoneros ( es, link=no, Movimiento Peronista Montonero-MPM) was an Argentine left-wing Peronist guerrilla organization, active throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. The name is an allusion to the 19th-century cavalry militias called Montoner ...
, and the AAA, people from the church, "
Carapintadas
The ' ( en, Painted Faces) were a group of mutineers in the Argentine Army, who took part in various uprisings between 1987 and 1990 during the presidencies of Raúl Alfonsín and Carlos Menem in Argentina. The rebellions, while at first thought ...
", etc. He promised a "revolution of production" and huge wage increases, but it was not clear exactly which policies he was proposing. The rival candidate,
Eduardo Angeloz
Eduardo César Angeloz (October 18, 1931 – August 23, 2017) was an Argentine politician. He was a presidential candidate and Governor of Córdoba from 1983 to 1995.
Angeloz was born in Río Tercero, Córdoba, and received a law degree from ...
, tried to point out the mistakes made by Menem and Alfonsín.
Jacques de Mahieu
Jacques de Mahieu, whose real name was Jacques Girault, (31 October 1915 – 4 October 1990) was a French Argentine anthropologist and Peronist.
He wrote several books on esoterism, which he mixed with anthropological theories inspired by sci ...
, a French ideologue of the Peronist movement (and former
Vichy
Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais.
It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...
collaborator), was photographed campaigning for Menem. His campaign slogans were ''¡Siganme!'' (Follow me!) and ''¡No los voy a defraudar!'' (I won't let you down!)
The elections were held on 14 May 1989. Menem won by a wide margin, and became the president-elect of Argentina. He was scheduled to take office on 10 December, but inflation levels took a turn for the worse, growing into
hyperinflation
In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
, causing
public riots. The outgoing president Alfonsín resigned and transferred power to Menem five months early, on 8 July. Menem's accession marked the first time since
Hipólito Yrigoyen
Juan Hipólito del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Yrigoyen (; 12 July 1852 – 3 July 1933) was an Argentine politician of the Radical Civic Union and two-time President of Argentina, who served his first term from 1916 to 1922 and his second ...
took office in 1916 that an incumbent president
peacefully transferred power
A peaceful transition or transfer of power is a concept important to democratic governments in which the leadership of a government peacefully hands over control of government to a newly-elected leadership. This may be after elections or during t ...
to an elected successor from the opposition.
[Edwards, p. 162]
Presidency
Economic policy
Hyperinflation forced Menem to abandon party
orthodoxy
Orthodoxy (from Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Antiquity, but different Churc ...
in favour of a
fiscally conservative
Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., '' ...
,
market-oriented economic policy.
At the time, most economists thought that the ideal solution was the
Washington Consensus
The Washington Consensus is a set of ten economic policy prescriptions considered to constitute the "standard" reform package promoted for crisis-wracked developing countries by Washington, D.C.-based institutions such as the International Monet ...
; i.e. reduce expenditures below the amount of money earned by the state, and open international commerce to
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...
. Alfonsín had proposed similar reforms in the past, alongside some limited
privatization
Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
of
state-owned enterprise
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a Government, government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn Profit (econom ...
s; those projects were resisted by the Partido Justicialistal opposition party, whose internal factions were actually benefiting from the prevailing
protectionist policies.
The magnitude of the crisis, however, convinced most politicians to change their minds. Menem, fearing that the crisis might force him to resign as well, embraced the Washington Consensus and rejected the traditional policies of
Peronism
Peronism, also called justicialism,. The Justicialist Party is the main Peronist party in Argentina, it derives its name from the concept of social justice., name=, group= is an Argentine political movement based on the ideas and legacy of Ar ...
.
The president invited several
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
figures into his cabinet, such as
Álvaro Alsogaray
Álvaro Carlos Alsogaray (22 June 1913 – 1 April 2005) was an Argentine politician and economist. He was Minister of Economy and was the principal proponent of classical liberalism in Argentina.
He founded the Union of the Democratic Centr ...
, as well as a businessman from
Bunge and Born
Bunge & Born was a multinational corporation based in Buenos Aires, Argentina, whose diverse interests included food processing and international trade in grains and oilseeds. It is now known as Bunge Limited.
History
Bunge & Born was founded in ...
; Miguel Roig, the company's then-vice president, became Menem's first appointed
minister of economy
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
on 30 May, although he would be replaced just five days after taking office due to his sudden death by
myocardial infarction
A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may ...
; in his place was appointed
Néstor Mario Rapanelli, who had succeeded Roig as vice president at Bunge and Born.
Congress passed the
economic emergency and
state reform law The state reform law ( es, Ley de reforma del estado) was sanctioned on August 17, 1989, in Argentina, during the presidency of Carlos Menem. It allowed the privatization of state enterprises, and the fusion or disbanding of state organizations.Rome ...
s. The first allowed president Menem to reduce or remove
subsidies
A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector (business, or individual) generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from the government, the ter ...
at his discretion, and the latter to privatize state enterprises – the first being telephones and airlines. These privatizations were beneficial to foreign creditors, who replaced their bonds with company shares.
[Romero, p. 289] Despite increased
tax revenue
Tax revenue is the income that is collected by governments through taxation. Taxation is the primary source of government revenue. Revenue may be extracted from sources such as individuals, public enterprises, trade, royalties on natural resou ...
and the money gained from privatizations, the economy was still unstable. The Bunge and Born businessmen left the government in late 1989, amid a second round of
hyperinflation
In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...
.
The first measure of the new minister of economy,
Antonio Erman González
Antonio Erman González (16 May 1935 – 2 February 2007) was an Argentinian politician. He occupied many charges during the presidency of Carlos Menem, like Minister of Economy, Minister of Health, Minister of Defense, Minister of Labour and Pr ...
, was a mandatory conversion of
time deposits into
government bond
A government bond or sovereign bond is a form of bond issued by a government to support public spending. It generally includes a commitment to pay periodic interest, called coupon payments'','' and to repay the face value on the maturity date ...
s: the
BONEX plan. It exacerbated the recession but was successful in reducing the inflation rate, which was its intended purpose.
[Edwards, p. 103][Romero, p. 290] González also lowered social welfare spending, including that for people with disabilities.
His fourth minister of economy,
Domingo Cavallo
Domingo Felipe Cavallo (born July 21, 1946) is an Argentine economist and politician. Between 1991 and 1996 he was Economic Ministry of Argentina during Carlos Menem presidency. He is known for implementing the ''Convertibility plan'', which es ...
, was appointed in 1991 and deepened the
liberalization
Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used m ...
of the economy. The
Convertibility plan
The Convertibility plan was a plan by the Argentine Currency Board that pegged the Argentine peso to the U.S. dollar between 1991 and 2002 in an attempt to eliminate hyperinflation and stimulate economic growth. While it initially met with cons ...
was sanctioned by Congress, setting a one-to-one
fixed exchange rate
A fixed exchange rate, often called a pegged exchange rate, is a type of exchange rate regime in which a currency's value is fixed or pegged by a monetary authority against the value of another currency, a basket of other currencies, or another m ...
between the
United States dollar
The United States dollar ( symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the officia ...
and the new
peso
The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the Dollar sign, same sign, "$", as many currencies na ...
, which replaced the
austral. The law also limited public expenditures, but this was frequently ignored. Under Cavallo, there was increased
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...
, alongside a general reduction of
tariff
A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and poli ...
s on imports and state regulations to tackle inflation, and high taxes on sales and earnings to reduce the deficit caused by it.
Initially, the plan was a success: the
capital flight
Capital flight, in economics, occurs when assets or money rapidly flow out of a country, due to an event of economic consequence or as the result of a political event such as regime change or economic globalization. Such events could be an increas ...
ended, interest rates were lowered, inflation fell to single digits, and economic activity increased; in that year alone, the
gross domestic product
Gross domestic product (GDP) is a money, monetary Measurement in economics, measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjec ...
grew at a rate of 10.5%.
The money from privatizations allowed Argentina to repurchase many of the
Brady Bonds
Brady bonds are dollar-denominated bonds, issued mostly by Latin American countries in the late 1980s. The bonds were named after U.S. Treasury Secretary Nicholas Brady, who proposed a novel debt-reduction agreement for developing countries.
...
issued during the crisis. The privatizations of
electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...
,
water
Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...
, and
gas
Gas is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, liquid, and plasma).
A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a noble gas like neon), elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g. oxygen), or ...
services were more successful than previous ones.
YPF
YPF S.A. (, formerly ; English: "Fiscal Oilfields") is a vertically integrated, majority state-owned Argentine energy company, engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, and the transportation, refining, and marketing of gas and petr ...
, the national oil refinery, was partially privatized as well, with the state keeping a good portion of its shares. The project to privatize the
pension fund
A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income.
Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...
s was resisted in Congress and was approved as a mixed system that allowed both public and private options for workers. The national state also signed a fiscal pact with the provinces, so that they reduced their local deficits as well;
Buenos Aires Province
Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...
was aided with a fund that gave the governor a million pesos daily.
Although the Convertibility plan had positive consequences in the short term, it caused problems that surfaced later. Large numbers of employees of privatized state enterprises were fired, and unemployment grew to over 10%. Big compensation payments prevented an immediate public reaction. Free trade and the expensive costs in dollars forced private companies to reduce the number of workers as well, or risk bankruptcy. Unions were unable to resist the changes. People with low incomes, such as retirees and state workers, suffered under tax increases while their wages remained frozen. Some provinces, such as
Santiago del Estero
Santiago del Estero (, Spanish for ''Saint-James-Upon-The-Lagoon'') is the capital of Santiago del Estero Province in northern Argentina. It has a population of 252,192 inhabitants, () making it the twelfth largest city in the country, with a surf ...
,
Jujuy
San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...
, and
San Juan, endured violent riots as well. To compensate for these issues, the government started a number of social welfare programs and restored protectionist policies over some sectors of the economy. It was difficult for Argentine companies to export, and easy imports damaged most national producers. The national budget soon slid into a deficit.
Cavallo soon began the second wave of privatizations, this time targeting the national postal service, the
Correo Argentino
The Official Post Service of the Argentine Republic ( es, Correo Oficial de la República Argentina, mostly known as Correo Argentino since it was privatized in 1997) is the state-owned company that covers the postal service in Argentina. The comp ...
, and the country's nuclear power plants. He also limited the amount of money released to the provinces. He still had the full support of Menem, despite growing opposition within the Justicialist Party.
The Mexican
Tequila Crisis
The Mexican peso crisis was a currency crisis sparked by the Mexican government's sudden devaluation of the peso against the U.S. dollar in December 1994, which became one of the first international financial crises ignited by capital flight ...
of 1994 impacted the national economy, causing the deficit, recession, and a growth in unemployment. The government further reduced public expenditures, the wages of state workers, and raised taxes. The deficit and recession were reduced, but unemployment stayed high. External debt increased. The crisis also proved that the economic system was vulnerable to capital flight.
The growing discontent over unemployment and the scandals caused by the privatization of the postal service led to Cavallo's removal as a minister, and his replacement by
Roque Fernández.
[Romero, pp. 308–309] Fernández maintained Cavallo's fiscal
austerity
Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spend ...
; he increased the price of fuels, sold the remaining state shares of YPF to
Repsol
Repsol S.A.
El Nuevo Herald, 2012-05-31[Originally an init ...]
, fired state employees, and raised the
value-added tax
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the end ...
to 21%. New labor law was met with resistance, both by Peronists, opposition parties, and unions, and could not be approved by Congress.
The
1997 Asian financial crisis
The Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of East Asia and Southeast Asia beginning in July 1997 and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998–1 ...
and the
1998 Russian financial crisis
The Russian financial crisis (also called the ruble crisis or the Russian flu) began in Russia on 17 August 1998. It resulted in the Russian government and the Russian Central Bank devaluing the ruble and defaulting on its debt. The crisis had s ...
also affected the country with consequences that lasted longer than the Tequila Crisis and started a
depression.
Domestic policy
Menem began his presidency assuming a non-confrontational approach, appointing people from the conservative opposition, and business people to his cabinet.
To prevent successful legal cases against the projected privatizations, the
Supreme Court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
's numbers were increased from five to nine judges; the new judges ruled in support of Menem and usually had the majority.
Other institutions that restrained or limited executive power were controlled as well. When Congress resisted some of his proposals, he used the
Necessity and Urgency Decree
A Necessity and Urgency Decree (Spanish: ''Decreto de necesidad y urgencia'', also known as DNU) is a special kind of order issued by the President of Argentina. Unlike regular decrees, which are used in Argentina for rulemaking, a DNU has the for ...
as an alternative to sending bills to it. He even considered it feasible to dissolve Congress and rule by decree, but this step was never implemented. In addition, he developed a ''bon vivant'' lifestyle, taking advantage of his authority. For instance, he made a journey from Buenos Aires to
Pinamar
Pinamar is an Argentine coastal resort city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in Buenos Aires Province. It has about 45,000 inhabitants (2020).
Located less than south of Buenos Aires, it is one of several small seaside communities that ...
driving a
Ferrari Testarossa
The Ferrari Testarossa (Type F110) is a 12-cylinder mid-engine sports car manufactured by Ferrari, which went into production in 1984 as the successor to the Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer. The Pininfarina-designed car was originally produced from ...
in less than two hours, violating speed limits. He divorced his wife
Zulema Yoma
Zulema Fátima Yoma (born 18 December 1942) was the First Lady of Argentina from 1989 until 1991, when she divorced President Carlos Menem.
Biography
A native of Nonogasta in La Rioja Province, Yoma was married for twenty-five years (1966–91) ...
and expanded the
Quinta de Olivos
The Quinta presidencial de Olivos, also known as Quinta de Olivos, is an architectural landmark in the north side Buenos Aires suburb of Olivos and the official residence of the President of Argentina.
It is one of the President's official res ...
presidential residence with a golf course, a small zoo, servants, a barber, and even a buffoon.
The
swiftgate scandal broke out in 1990, as American investors were damaged by a case of corruption, and asked for assistance from the United States' Ambassador
Terence Todman
Terence Alphonso Todman (March 13, 1926 – August 13, 2014) was an American diplomat who served as the U.S. Ambassador to Chad, Guinea, Costa Rica, Spain, Denmark, and Argentina. In 1990, he was awarded the rank of Career Ambassador.
Life
Todma ...
. Most of the ministers resigned as a result of it.
Cavallo was reassigned as minister of economy, and his successful economic plan turned him into a prominent figure in Menem's cabinet. Cavallo brought a number of independent economists to the cabinet, and Menem supported him by replacing Peronist politicians. Both teams complemented each other. Both Menem and Cavallo tried to be recognized as the designer of the convertibility plan.
Antonio Cafiero
Antonio Francisco Cafiero (12 September 1922 – 13 October 2014) was an Argentine Justicialist Party politician. Cafiero held a number of important posts throughout his career, including, most notably, the governorship of Buenos Aires Province f ...
, a rival of Menem in the Partido Justicialistal, was unable to amend the constitution of the province of Buenos Aires to run for re-election. Duhalde stepped down from the vice presidency and became the new governor in the
1991 elections, turning the province into a powerful bastion. Menem also selected famous people with no political background to run for office in those elections, including the singer
Palito Ortega
Ramón Bautista Ortega (; born February 28, 1941) is an Argentine singer and actor, better known as Palito Ortega (). Ortega is an icon of Argentine popular music, and is considered one of the main representatives of the musical style called N ...
and racing driver
Carlos Reutemann
Carlos Alberto "Lole" Reutemann (12 April 1942 – 7 July 2021) was an Argentine racing driver who raced in Formula One from to , and later became a politician in his native province of Santa Fe, for the Justicialist Party, and governor of ...
. The elections were a big success for the Partido Justicialistal, . After these elections, all of the Partido Justicialistal, was aligned with Menem's leadership, with the exception of a small number of legislators known as the "Group of Eight". The opposition from the UCR was minimal, as the party was still discredited by the 1989 crisis. With such political influence, Menem began his proposal to amend the constitution to allow a re-election. The party did not have the required supermajority in the Congress to call for it. The Partido Justicialistal was divided, as other politicians intended to replace Menem in 1995 or negotiate their support. The UCR was divided as well, as Alfonsín opposed the proposal, but governors Angeloz and Massaccesi were open for negotiations. The victory in the
1993 elections strengthened his proposal, which was approved by the Senate. Menem called for a non-binding referendum on the proposal, to increase pressure on the Radical deputies. He also sent a bill to Congress to modify the majority requirements. Alfonsín met with Menem and agreed to support the proposal in exchange for amendments that would place limits on presidential power. This negotiation is known as the
Pact of Olivos
The Olivos Pact ( es, Pacto de Olivos) refers to a series of documents signed on November 17, 1993, between the governing President of Argentina, President of Argentina, Carlos Menem, and former President and leader of the opposition Radical Civic ...
. The capital city of Buenos Aires would be allowed to elect its own
chief of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a gr ...
. Presidential elections would use a system of
ballotage
The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...
, and the president could only be re-elected once. The
electoral college was abolished, replaced by
direct elections
Direct election is a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are cho ...
. The provinces would be allowed to elect a third senator; two for the majority party and one for the first minority. The
Council of Magistracy of the Nation
The Council of Magistracy of the Nation ( es, Consejo de la Magistratura de la Nación) is an organ of the Judicial Branch of the Government of Argentina. It is in charge of appointing judges, of presenting charges against them to an Accusation Jur ...
would have the power to propose new judges, and the Necessity and Urgency Decrees would have a reduced scope.
Despite the internal opposition of
Fernando de la Rúa
Fernando de la Rúa (15 September 19379 July 2019) was an Argentine politician and a member of the Radical Civic Union (UCR) political party who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1999 to 21 December 2001. De la Rúa was born in ...
, Alfonsín got his party to approve the pact. He reasoned that Menem would be supported by the eventual referendum, that many legislators would turn to his side, and he would eventually be able to amend the constitution reinforcing presidential power rather than limiting it. Still, as both sides feared a betrayal, all the contents of the pact were included as a single proposal, not allowing the Constituent Assembly to discuss each one separately. The
Broad Front, a new political party composed of former Peronists, led by
Carlos Álvarez, grew in the elections for the Constituent Assembly. Both the Partido Justicialistal, and the UCR respected the pact, which was completely approved. Duhalde made a similar amendment to the constitution of Buenos Aires province, in order to be re-elected in 1995. Menem won the elections with more than 50% of the vote, followed by
José Octavio Bordón
José Octavio Bordón (born 22 December 1945) is an Argentine politician and diplomat. He was governor of Mendoza Province from 1987 to 1991, and served in both houses of the National Congress as a National Deputy and a National Senator. Most ...
, and Carlos Álvarez. The UCR finished third in the elections for the first time.
Growing unemployment increased popular resistance against Menem after his re-election. There were several riots and demonstrations in the provinces, unions opposed the economic policies, and the opposing parties organized the first ''
cacerolazo
A cacerolazo ( or ), cacerolada (, ) or casserole is a form of popular protest which consists of a group of people making noise by banging pots, pans, and other utensils in order to call for attention.
The first documented protests of this styl ...
s''.
Estanislao Esteban Karlic
Estanislao Esteban Karlic (born 7 February 1926) is an Argentine Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Paraná, Archbishop of Paraná from 1986 to 2003, and was elevated to the Ca ...
replaced
Antonio Quarracino
Antonio Quarracino (8 August 1923 – 28 February 1998) was a Cardinal of the Catholic Church of Argentina and the Archbishop of Buenos Aires between 1990 and 1998.
Biography Early life and priesthood
Quarracino was born in Pollica, Prov ...
as the head of the
Argentine Episcopal Conference The Argentine Episcopal Conference ( es, Conferencia Episcopal Argentina) is an episcopal conference of the Roman Catholic Church of Argentina that gathers the bishops of the country in order to discuss pastoral issues and in general all matters tha ...
, which led to a growing opposition to Menem from the Church. The teachers' unions established a "white tent" at the Congressional plaza as a form of protest. The first ''
piquetero
A ''piquetero'' is a member of a group that has blocked a street with the purpose of demonstrating and calling attention over a particular issue or demand. The word is a neologism in the Spanish of Argentina, coming from ''piquete'' (in English ...
s'' operated in
Cutral Có, and this protest method was soon imitated in the rest of the country. Menem's authority in the Partido Justicialistal, was also held in doubt, as he was unable to run for another re-election and the party sought a candidate for the 1999 elections. This led to a fierce rivalry with Duhalde, the most likely candidate. Menem attempted to undermine his chances, and proposed a new amendment to the constitution allowing him to run for an unlimited number of re-elections. He also started a judicial case, claiming that his inability to run for a third term was a
proscription
Proscription ( la, proscriptio) is, in current usage, a 'decree of condemnation to death or banishment' (''Oxford English Dictionary'') and can be used in a political context to refer to state-approved murder or banishment. The term originated ...
. Several scandals erupted, such as the
scandal over Argentine arms sales to Ecuador and Croatia
The Argentine arms trafficking scandal involved illegal arms shipments of 6500 tons of weapons and ammunition from Argentina to Croatia and Ecuador between 1991–1995. At the time of the shipments Croatia was under a United Nations arms embargo, ...
, the
Río Tercero explosion
The Río Tercero explosion was a series of explosions in Río Tercero, Córdoba, Argentina, that happened on 3 November 1995 at Río Tercero Military Factory, an ammunition factory, during Carlos Menem's presidency. The explosion killed seven peop ...
that may have destroyed evidence, the murder of the journalist
José Luis Cabezas
José Luis Cabezas (Wilde, Buenos Aires, 28 November 1961 – General Madariaga, 25 January 1997) was an Argentine news photographer and reporter who worked for '' Noticias'', a leading local newsmagazine. Cabezas gained notoriety after he was ki ...
, and the suicide of
Alfredo Yabrán
Alfredo Enrique Nalib Yabrán (1 November 1944 – 20 May 1998) was a businessman in Argentina, with close links with the government, in particular with the administration of Carlos Saúl Menem. Yabrán killed himself while facing arrest for susp ...
, who may have ordered it. The Partido Justicialistal, lost the 1997 midterm elections against the UCR and the FREPASO united in a political coalition, the
Alliance for Work, Justice and Education
The Alliance for Work, Justice and Education (in Spanish: ''Alianza para el Trabajo, la Justicia y la Educación''), also known as Alliance (in Spanish: ''Alianza'') was a centre-left political coalition in Argentina around the turn of the third ...
(Alianza). The Supreme Court confirmed that Menem was unable to run for a third re-election. Duhalde became the candidate for the presidential elections, and lost to the candidate for the Alianza ticket, Fernando de la Rúa.
Foreign policy
During Menem's presidency, Argentina aligned with the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, and had
special relations with the country. Menem had good relations with U.S. president
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
, and his successor
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
from 1993 on.
The country left the
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide.
The movement originated in the aftermath o ...
, and the
Cóndor missile program was discontinued. Argentina supported all the international positions of the U.S., and sent forces to the
Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
, and the peace keeping efforts after the
Kosovo War
The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the war ...
.
[Romero, p. 303]
The country was accepted as a
major non-NATO ally
Major non-NATO ally (MNNA) is a designation given by the United States government to close allies that have strategic working relationships with the US Armed Forces but are not members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While the s ...
, but not as a
full member.
Menem's government re-established relations with the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, suspended since the
Falklands War
The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
, after
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...
left office in 1990. The discussions on the
Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute
Sovereignty over the Falkland Islands ( es, Islas Malvinas) is disputed by Argentina and the United Kingdom. The British claim to sovereignty dates from 1690, when they made the first recorded landing on the islands, and the United Kingdom has exe ...
were temporarily given a lower priority, and the focus shifted to discussions of fishing rights.
In 1991 Menem became the first head of state of Argentina to make a
diplomatic visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a head of state to a foreign country, at the invitation of the head of state of that foreign country, with the latter also acting as the Hospitality, official host for the duration of the state visit. Speaking ...
to
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
. He proposed mediating between Israel and
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
in their negotiations over the
Golan Heights
The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...
. The diplomatic relations between Argentina and Israel were later damaged by the lack of results in the investigations over the
terrorist attacks
The following is a list of terrorist incidents that have not been carried out by a state or its forces (see state terrorism and state-sponsored terrorism). Assassinations are listed at List of assassinated people.
Definitions of terrori ...
against the Israeli embassy and the AMIA center in Buenos Aires.
In 1998, Menem visited Russia, and met with Russian president
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin ( rus, Борис Николаевич Ельцин, p=bɐˈrʲis nʲɪkɐˈla(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈjelʲtsɨn, a=Ru-Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin.ogg; 1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician wh ...
, where Menem expressed his anticommunist sentiments and congratulated Yeltsin for "defeating communism" in Russia.
Chile
Menem also settled all remaining
border issues with
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
. The
Lago del Desierto dispute had an international arbitration, favourable to Argentina. The only exception was the dispute over the
Southern Patagonian Ice Field
The Southern Patagonian Ice Field ( es, Hielo Continental or '), located at the Southern Patagonic Andes between Chile and Argentina, is the world's second largest contiguous extrapolar ice field. It is the bigger of two remnant parts of the Pat ...
, which is still open.
Previously and contrary to other Peronist authorities, Menem voted for the
.
Chilean president
Patricio Aylwin
Patricio Aylwin Azócar (; 26 November 1918 – 19 April 2016) was a Chilean politician from the Christian Democratic Party, lawyer, author, professor and former senator. He was the first president of Chile after dictator Augusto Pinochet, a ...
was at first sceptical towards his Argentine counterpart whom he according to
Emol
''El Mercurio'' (known online as ''El Mercurio On-Line'', ''EMOL'') is a Chilean newspaper with editions in Valparaíso and Santiago. Its Santiago edition is considered the country's newspaper of record and it is considered the oldest daily in t ...
considered "scruffy" ( es, destartalado).
[ Over time however Aylwin changed his opinion, saying at one point "this Turk wins everybody over" (''este turco se los conquista a todos''). Aylwin's successor, ]Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle
Eduardo Alfredo Juan Bernardo Frei Ruiz–Tagle (; born 24 June 1942) is a Chilean politician and civil engineer who served as president of Chile from 1994 to 2000. He was also a Senator, fulfilling the role of President of the Senate from 2006 ...
, had particularly warm relations with Menem.[ Former Chilean foreign minister ]José Miguel Insulza
José Miguel Insulza Salinas (born June 2, 1943) is a Chilean politician, lawyer, and academic serving as a Senate of Chile, senator for the Arica y Parinacota Region since 2018. He previously served as Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Chile), Minis ...
recalls of meetings with Menem and Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle in Anillaco in the 1990s where they enjoyed talking about politics and football.[ All of this made the critics of Menem label him "pro-Chilean".][ President of Chile ]Sebastián Piñera
Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique OMCh (; born 1 December 1949) is a Chilean billionaire businessman and politician who served as president of Chile from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2022.
The son of a Christian Democratic polit ...
posthumously called him "a good friend of Chile". Similarly, José Miguel Insulza called Menem "one of the best friends of Chile".[
]
Armed forces
Argentina was still divided by the aftermath of the Dirty War
The Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) is the name used by the military junta or civic-military dictatorship of Argentina ( es, dictadura cívico-militar de Argentina, links=no) for the period of state terrorism in Argentina from 1974 to 1983 a ...
(the dirty war ended in 1983, Menem's presidency began in 1989). Menem proposed an agenda of national reconciliation. First, he arranged the repatriation
Repatriation is the process of returning a thing or a person to its country of origin or citizenship. The term may refer to non-human entities, such as converting a foreign currency into the currency of one's own country, as well as to the pro ...
of the body of Juan Manuel de Rosas
Juan Manuel José Domingo Ortiz de Rosas (30 March 1793 – 14 March 1877), nicknamed "Restorer of the Laws", was an Argentine politician and army officer who ruled Buenos Aires Province and briefly the Argentine Confederation. Althoug ...
, a controversial 19th century governor, and proposed to reconcile his legacy with those of Bartolomé Mitre
Bartolomé Mitre Martínez (26 June 1821 – 19 January 1906) was an Argentine statesman, soldier and author. He was President of Argentina from 1862 to 1868 and the first president of unified Argentina.
Mitre is known as the most versatile ...
and Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento (; born Domingo Faustino Fidel Valentín Sarmiento y Albarracín; 15 February 1811 – 11 September 1888) was an Argentine activist, intellectual, writer, statesman and the second President of Argentina. His writing s ...
, who also fought in the Argentine Civil Wars
The Argentine Civil Wars were a series of civil conflicts of varying intensity that took place through the territories of Argentina from 1814 to 1853. Initiation concurrently with the Argentine War of Independence (1810–1820), the conflict pr ...
. Menem intended to use the reconciliation of these historical Argentine figures as a metaphor for the reconciliation of the Dirty War. However, although the repatriation and acceptance of Rosas was a success, the acceptance of the military regime was not.
The military leaders of the National Reorganization Process
The National Reorganization Process (Spanish: ''Proceso de Reorganización Nacional'', often simply ''el Proceso'', "the Process") was the military dictatorship that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983, in which it was supported by the United Sta ...
, convicted in the 1985 Trial of the Juntas
The Trial of the Juntas ( es, Juicio a las Juntas) was the judicial trial of the members of the ''de facto'' military government that ruled Argentina during the dictatorship of the Proceso de Reorganización Nacional (''el proceso''), which laste ...
, received presidential pardons, despite popular opposition to them. This was an old request of the ''Carapintadas
The ' ( en, Painted Faces) were a group of mutineers in the Argentine Army, who took part in various uprisings between 1987 and 1990 during the presidencies of Raúl Alfonsín and Carlos Menem in Argentina. The rebellions, while at first thought ...
'' in previous years. However, Menem did not apply their proposed changes to the military. The colonel, Mohamed Alí Seineldín
Mohamed Alí Seineldín (Arabic:محمد علي زين الدين) (November 12, 1933 – September 2, 2009) was an Argentine army colonel who participated in two failed uprisings against the democratically elected governments of both President R ...
, who was also pardoned, started a new mutiny, killing two military men. Unlike the mutinies that took place during the presidency of Alfonsín, the military fully obeyed Menem's orders for a forceful repression. Seineldín was utterly defeated, and sentenced to life imprisonment. This was the last military mutiny in Argentina.
The president effected drastic cuts to the military budget, and privatized military factories. Menem appointed Lt. Gen. Martín Balza
Lieutenant General Martín Antonio Balza (13 June 1934 Salto, Buenos Aires) is an Argentine military former Chief of Staff of the Argentine Army. From 2003 to 2011 he was Argentine ambassador to the Republic of Colombia.
A man of strong democr ...
, who had performed well during the repression of Seineldín's mutiny, as the Army's General Chief of Staff (head of the military hierarchy). The death of a conscript
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
soldier in 1994, victim of abuses by his superiors, led to the abolition of conscription in the country. The following year, Balza voiced the first institutional self-criticism of the armed forces during the Dirty War, saying that obedience did not justify the actions committed in those years.
Terrorist attacks
The Israeli embassy suffered a terrorist car bomb attack on 17 March 1992. It was perceived as a consequence of Argentina's involvement in the Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
. Although Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
claimed responsibility for it, the Supreme Court investigated several other hypotheses. The Court wrote a report in 1996 suggesting that it could have been the explosion of an arms cache stored in the basement. Another hypothesis was that the attack could have been performed by Jewish extremists, in order to cast blame on Muslims and thwart the peace negotiations. The Court finally held Hezbollah responsible for the attack in May 1999.
The Argentine Israelite Mutual Association
Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish ( masculine) or ( feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...
suffered a terrorist attack
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
with another car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
on 18 July 1994, killing eighty-five people. It was the most destructive terrorist attack in the history of Latin America. The attack was universally condemned and 155,000 people demonstrated at the Congressional plaza, but Menem did not attend.[Ruggiero, p. 90] The legal case stayed unresolved during the remainder of Menem's presidency. Menem had suggested, in the first press conference, that former ''Carapintada'' leaders may be responsible for the attack, but this idea was rejected by the minister of defense several hours later. The CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
office in Buenos Aires initially considered it a joint Iranian-Syrian attack, but some days later considered it just an Iranian attack. Menem and Mossad
Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...
also preferred this line of investigation. As a result of the attack, the Jewish community in Argentina had increased influence over Argentine politics. Years later, the prosecutor Alberto Nisman
Natalio Alberto Nisman (5 December 1963 – 18 January 2015) was an Argentine lawyer who worked as a federal prosecutor, noted for being the chief investigator of the 1994 car bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires, which killed 85 people, t ...
charged Menem with covering up a local connection to the attack, as the local terrorists may have been distant Syrian relatives of the Menem family. However, Menem was never tried for this suspected cover-up, and on 18 January 2015, Nisman was found dead of a gunshot to his head at his home in Buenos Aires.
On 15 March 1995, Menem's son died while piloting a Bell 206B-3 helicopter, along with Silvio Oltra who was riding as a passenger. The helicopter reportedly struck overhead power lines
An overhead power line is a structure used in electric power transmission and distribution to transmit electrical energy across large distances. It consists of one or more uninsulated electrical cables (commonly multiples of three for three-p ...
near Ramallo in the north of the province of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
and crashed, killing both men. Later on, remains of Menem Jr. were exhumed amid murder claims by his mother Zulema Yoma. Menem had accused the Lebanese Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
Islamist group, Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
, of killing his son.
Post-presidency
Menem ran in 2003 and won the greatest number of votes, 24%, in the first round of the 27 April 2003 presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President.
Elections by country
Albania
The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.
Chile
The pre ...
; but votes were split among numerous parties. Under the 1994 amendment, a presidential candidate can win outright by winning 45% of the vote, or 40% if the margin of victory is 10 or more percentage points. This set the stage for Argentina's first-ever ballotage between Menem and second-place finisher, and fellow Peronist, Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007, Governor of Santa Cruz Province from 1991 to 2003, Secretary General of UNASUR and ...
, who had received 22%. It was scheduled for 18 May. However, by that time, Menem had become very unpopular. Polls predicted that he faced almost certain defeat by Kirchner in the runoff. Most polls showed Kirchner taking at least 60 percent of the vote, and at least one poll showed Menem losing by as many as 50 points. To avoid a humiliating defeat, Menem withdrew his candidacy on 14 May, effectively handing the presidency to Kirchner.
Ángel Maza
Ángel Eduardo Maza (born 18 December 1954) is an Argentine Justicialist Party (PJ) politician. He was the governor of La Rioja Province during several terms, until he was ousted by impeachment in 2007. His sister, Ada Maza, is a national senat ...
, the elected governor of La Rioja, was allied with Menem, and had campaigned for him. However, weak provincial finances forced Maza to switch his support to Kirchner, which weakened Menem's influence even further. In June 2004 Menem announced that he had founded a new faction within the Partido Justicialista, called "People's Peronism". He announced his intention to run in the 2007 election. In 2005, the press reported that he was trying to form an alliance with his former minister of economy Cavallo to fight in the parliamentary elections. Menem said that there had been only preliminary conversations and an alliance did not result. In the 23 October 2005 elections, Menem won the minority seat in the Senate representing his province of birth. The two seats allocated to the majority were won by President Kirchner's faction, locally led by Ángel Maza.
Menem ran for Governor of La Rioja in August 2007, but was defeated. He finished in third place with about 22% of the vote. This was viewed as a catastrophic defeat, signaling the end of his political dominance in La Rioja
La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, and N ...
. It was the first time in 30 years that Menem had lost an election. Following this defeat in his home province, he withdrew his candidacy for president. At the end of 2009 he announced that he intended to run for the presidency again in the 2011 elections. but ran for a new term as a senator instead. In 2019, he eventually sat in the Frente de Todos' Senatebench until his death in 2021.
Corruption charges
On 7 June 2001, Menem was arrested over a weapons export scandal. The scheme was based on exports to Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
and Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
in 1991 and 1996. He was held under house arrest until November. He appeared before a judge in late August 2002 and denied all charges. Menem and his Chilean second wife Cecilia Bolocco
Cecilia Carolina Bolocco Fonck (born May 19, 1965) is a Chilean actress, TV host, and beauty queen who was crowned Miss Universo Chile 1987 and Miss Universe 1987.
Bolocco has worked as a journalist on the Spanish language edition of CNN, on T ...
, who had had a child since their marriage in 2001, fled to Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
. Argentine judicial authorities repeatedly requested Menem's extradition
Extradition is an action wherein one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, over to the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdict ...
to face embezzlement charges. This request was rejected by the Chilean Supreme Court as under Chilean law, people cannot be extradited for questioning. On 22 December 2004, after the arrest warrants were cancelled, Menem returned with his family to Argentina. He still faced charges of embezzlement and failing to declare illegal funds in a Swiss bank
Banking in Switzerland dates to the early eighteenth century through Switzerland's merchant trade and has, over the centuries, grown into a complex, regulated, and international industry. Banking is seen as emblematic of Switzerland, along with ...
. He was declared innocent of those charges in 2013.
In August 2008, the BBC reported that Menem was under investigation for his role in the 1995 Río Tercero explosion
The Río Tercero explosion was a series of explosions in Río Tercero, Córdoba, Argentina, that happened on 3 November 1995 at Río Tercero Military Factory, an ammunition factory, during Carlos Menem's presidency. The explosion killed seven peop ...
, which is alleged to have been part of the weapons scandal involving Croatia and Ecuador. Following an Appeals Court ruling that found Menem guilty of aggravated smuggling, he was sentenced to seven years in prison on 13 June 2013, for his role in illegally smuggling weapons to Ecuador and Croatia; his position as senator earned him immunity from incarceration, and his advanced age (82) afforded him the possibility of house arrest. His minister of defence during the weapons sales, Oscar Camilión
Oscar Héctor Camilión (6 January 1930 – 12 February 2016) was an Argentine lawyer and diplomat.
Born in 1930, he earned a law degree at the University of Buenos Aires in his hometown. Camilión first joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ...
, was concurrently sentenced to five and a half years. Menem was scheduled to attend a trial on the matter in which he was charged with "indirect responsibility", on 24 February 2021; but died ten days before that.
In December 2008, the German multinational Siemens
Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational conglomerate corporation and the largest industrial manufacturing company in Europe headquartered in Munich with branch offices abroad.
The principal divisions of the corporation are ''Industry'', '' ...
agreed to pay an $800 million fine to the United States government, and approximately €700 million to the German government, to settle allegations of bribery. The settlement revealed that Menem had received about US$2 million in bribes from Siemens in exchange for awarding the national ID card and passport production contract to Siemens; Menem denied the charges but nonetheless agreed to pay a fine.
On 1 December 2015, Menem was also found guilty of embezzlement, and sentenced four and half years to prison. Domingo Cavallo, his economy minister, and Raúl Granillo Ocampo, Menem's former minister of justice, also received prison sentences of more than three years for participating in the scheme, and were ordered to repay hundreds of thousands of pesos’ worth of illegal bonuses.
Illness and death
On 13 June 2020, Menem was hospitalized due to a severe case of pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
and placed in intensive care; he tested negative for COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and was discharged on 29 June 2020, three days before his 90th birthday. On 15 December 2020, he was hospitalized again at the Los Arcos Sanatorium due to a urinary infection. On 24 December 2020, Menem was induced into coma after a kidney failure.
He died on 14 February 2021 at the Sanatorio Los Arcos in Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
from complications of urinary tract infection. The national government issued three days of national mourning
A national day of mourning is a day or days marked by mourning and memorial activities observed among the majority of a country's populace. They are designated by the national government. Such days include those marking the death or funeral of ...
, and had a public funeral at the Palace of the Argentine National Congress
The Palace of the Argentine National Congress ( es, Palacio del Congreso de la Nación Argentina, often referred locally as ''Palacio del Congreso'') is a monumental building, seat of the Argentine National Congress, located in the city of Buenos ...
. It was attended by several politicians, including the president Alberto Fernández
Alberto Ángel Fernández (; born 2 April 1959) is an Argentine politician, lawyer and professor, serving as president of Argentina since 2019.
Born in Buenos Aires, Fernández attended the University of Buenos Aires, where he earned his law ...
, and by hundreds of people. He was buried at the San Justo Islamic cemetery the following day, next to his son. His daughter confirmed that he had died as a Catholic, but he would be buried according to Muslim rites in the Islamic Cemetery to be with his family.
Although former presidents are meant to have a bust at the Hall of Busts of the Casa Rosada
The ''Casa Rosada'' (, eng, Pink House) is the office of the president of Argentina. The palatial mansion is known officially as ''Casa de Gobierno'' ("House of Government" or "Government House"). Normally, the president lives at the Quinta de ...
8 years after they leave office, By the time of his death Menem never received such honor. Casa Rosada actually has a bust of Menem donated by artist Fernando Pugliese, but never disclosed it. President Alberto Fernández told Zulema Menem that the intention was to make a ceremony once Menem recovered from his health problems; unfortunately, he died.
Style and legacy
In the early days, Menem sported an image similar to the old ''caudillos
A ''caudillo'' ( , ; osp, cabdillo, from Latin , diminutive of ''caput'' "head") is a type of personalist leader wielding military and political power. There is no precise definition of ''caudillo'', which is often used interchangeably with ...
'', such as Facundo Quiroga and Chacho Peñaloza
Chacho is a male nickname in Spanish-speaking countries, often a diminutive form of " muchacho". It may refer to:
People
* Chacho Peñaloza (1796–1863), Argentine military officer and politician
* Chacho (footballer) Eduardo González Valiño ...
. He groomed his sideburns
Sideburns, sideboards, or side whiskers are facial hair grown on the sides of the face, extending from the hairline to run parallel to or beyond the ears. The term ''sideburns'' is a 19th-century corruption of the original ''burnsides'', named ...
in a similar style. His presidential inauguration was attended by several gaucho
A gaucho () or gaúcho () is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, and the south of Chilean Patagonia. Gauchos became greatly admired and ...
s.
Contrary to Peronist tradition, Menem did not prepare huge rallies in the Plaza de Mayo
The Plaza de Mayo (; en, May Square) is a city square and main foundational site of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was formed in 1884 after the demolition of the Recova building, unifying the city's Plaza Mayor and Plaza de Armas, by that time kn ...
to address the people from the balcony of the Casa Rosada
The ''Casa Rosada'' (, eng, Pink House) is the office of the president of Argentina. The palatial mansion is known officially as ''Casa de Gobierno'' ("House of Government" or "Government House"). Normally, the president lives at the Quinta de ...
. Instead, he took full advantage of mass media
Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets.
Broadcast media transmit information ...
, such as television.
Menem's administration was exalted by libertarians Javier Milei
Javier Gerardo Milei (born 22 October 1970) is an Argentine politician, businessman and economist currently serving as a federal deputy of Buenos Aires.
Milei became widely known for his regular television appearances where he has been critical ...
and Diego Giacomini
Diego is a Spanish masculine given name. The Portuguese equivalent is Diogo. The name also has several patronymic derivations, listed below. The etymology of Diego is disputed, with two major origin hypotheses: ''Tiago'' and ''Didacus''.
E ...
in the late 2010s, after being strongly criticized during and by Kirchnerism
Kirchnerism ( es, Kirchnerismo ) is an Argentine political movement based on populist ideals formed by the supporters of Néstor Kirchner and his wife Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who consecutively served as Presidents of Argentina. Althoug ...
. Some liberal economists such as José Luis Espert and Alberto Benegas Lynch
Alberto is the Romance version of the Latinized form (''Albertus'') of Germanic ''Albert''. It is used in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish. The diminutive forms are ''Albertito'' in Spain or ''Albertico'' in some parts of Latin America, Albertin ...
have also taken a critical approach towards Menem's presidency.
Honours
Foreign honours
* :
** Grand Cross of the Grand Order of King Tomislav
The Grand Order of King Tomislav ( hr, Velered kralja Tomislava), or officially the Grand Order of King Tomislav with Sash and Great Morning Star (''Velered kralja Tomislava s lentom i Velikom Danicom''), is the highest state order of Croatia. It ...
* :
** Collar of the Order of the Nile
The Order of the Nile (''Kiladat El Nil'') was established in 1915 and was one of the Kingdom of Egypt's principal orders until the monarchy was abolished in 1953. It was then reconstituted as the Republic of Egypt's highest state honor.
Sultana ...
* :
** First Class of the Order of Jamaica
The Order of Jamaica is the fifth of the six orders in the Jamaican honours system. The Order was established in 1969, and it is considered the equivalent of a knighthood in the British honours system.
Membership in the Order can be conferred upon ...
* :
** Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the Great
The Order of Vytautas the Great is the Lithuanian Presidential Award.''Lietuvos Respublikos Konstitucija. 84 straipsnis''. Priimta 1992 It may be conferred on the heads of Lithuania and foreign states, as well as their citizens, for distinguished ...
* :
** Knight Grand Cross with Collar Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi.
The highest-ranking ...
(1992)
* :
** Honorary Recipient of the Order of the Crown of the Realm
The Most Exalted Order of the Crown of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Utama Seri Mahkota Negara) is a Malaysian federal award. It is ranked lower than the Order of the Royal Family of Malaysia.
It should not be confused with the Order of Loyalty to the ...
(1991).
* :
** Collar of the Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero
The Order of Manuel Amador Guerrero ( es, Orden de Manuel Amador Guerrero) is the highest honour of Panama. Named after Manuel Amador Guerrero, the first president of Panama, the order was established on the 50th anniversary of Panama's independ ...
* :
** Collar of the Order of the Sun of Peru
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
* Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of ...
* :
** Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland
The Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Order Zasługi Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) is a Polish order of merit created in 1974, awarded to persons who have rendered great service to Poland. It is granted to foreigners or Poles resident ab ...
* :
** Collar of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
The Order of Isabella the Catholic ( es, Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order and honor granted to persons and institutions in recognition of extraordinary services to the homeland or the promotion of international relations a ...
* :
** Grand Cross of the Order of Good Hope
The Order of Good Hope or Order of the Cape of Good Hope is a dormant order of merit of the Republic of South Africa.
History
The Order of Good Hope was founded in 1973, by the republican government of South Africa, to grant those who had disti ...
* :
** Grand Cordon of the Order of the Republic of Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
(1997)
*:
** Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay The Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay is a distinction of Uruguay created by Law No. 16300 and awarded by the Presidency of the Republic at the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to foreign personalities, by reason of the princip ...
(1994).
* :
** Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III.
...
(1998).
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Launch of new faction (from the BBC)
Chile declines extradition request (from the BBC)
Menem arrives on Argentine soil (from the BBC)
Biography by CIDOB
(in Spanish)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Menem, Carlos Saul
1930 births
2021 deaths
20th-century Argentine politicians
20th-century Argentine writers
20th-century male writers
21st-century Argentine politicians
Argentine Roman Catholics
Argentine former Muslims
Argentine anti-communists
20th-century Argentine lawyers
Argentine male writers
Argentine people of Syrian descent
Argentine politicians convicted of corruption
Articles containing video clips
Converts to Roman Catholicism from Islam
Deaths from kidney failure
Governors of La Rioja Province, Argentina
Heads of government who were later imprisoned
Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Infectious disease deaths in Argentina
Justicialist Party politicians
Members of the Argentine Senate for La Rioja
Carlos
National University of Córdoba alumni
Opposition to Fidel Castro
People from La Rioja Province, Argentina
Presidents of Argentina
Prisoners and detainees of Argentina
Recipients of the Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay
Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 1st class