Zulema Fátima Yoma (born 18 December 1942) was the

First Lady of Argentina First Lady or First Gentleman of Argentina (), also known as First Lady or First Gentleman of the Argentine Nation (), is a title typically held by the spouse of the president of Argentina, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although ...

from 1989 until 1991, when she divorced then President

Carlos Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronism, Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 200 ...

Biography

A native of Nonogasta in La Rioja Province, Yoma was married for twenty-five years (1966–91) to

Carlos Saúl Menem Carlos Saúl Menem (2 July 1930 – 14 February 2021) served as the 50th president of Argentina for ten years, from 1989 to 1999. He identified as Peronist, serving as President of the Justicialist Party for 13 years (from 1990 to 2001 and agai ...

, who served as

President of Argentina The president of Argentina, officially known as the president of the Argentine Nation, is both head of state and head of government of Argentina. Under Constitution of Argentina, the national constitution, the president is also the Head of go ...

from July 1989 to December 1999. Her parents were

Syrian Syrians () are the majority inhabitants of Syria, indigenous to the Levant, most of whom have Arabic, especially its Levantine and Mesopotamian dialects, as a mother tongue. The cultural and linguistic heritage of the Syrian people is a blend ...

Muslims, as Menem's were. Yoma and Menem had two children, a son, Carlos Saúl Facundo Menem Yoma, who died in a

helicopter crash A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which Lift (force), lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning Helicopter rotor, rotors. This allows the helicopter to VTOL, take off and land vertically, to hover (helicopter), hover, and ...

in 1995, and a daughter, Zulemita, who, following her parents' divorce in 1991, fulfilled the role of First Lady at formal occasions for the remaining eight years of her father's presidency.

Controversies

Her son, Carlos Saúl Facundo Menem, died in a helicopter crash in 1995. Although the crash was ruled an accident, there are

conspiracy theories A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

that say he was actually murdered, of which Zulema Yoma and her daughter Zulemita are convinced. Yoma felt her son's death was politically motivated and even stated that the corpse buried in the tomb of the Islamic cemetery is not that of her son, requesting an

exhumation Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and object ...

.Zulema Yoma insisted in Mendoza that her son died in a planned attack
Her son had an illegitimate daughter named Antonella Pinetta, who was born in 1988. Yoma did not recognize her as her granddaughter and refused to have her

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

examined, requesting that the test should be matched from the body of her son, to support her request for the exhumation of the body. While President Menem agreed to participate in the DNA testing, he refused to proceed with the exhumation.

References

* 1942 births Living people Argentine Muslims First ladies and gentlemen of Argentina Argentine people of Syrian descent Argentine people of Arab descent People from La Rioja Province, Argentina Menem family {{Argentina-bio-stub