The death of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal on Wednesday in a Madrid hospital, two weeks after her eviction from the apartment where she had lived for 70 years, has galvanized nationwide housing protests and sparked a political crisis.
Abascal, who used a wheelchair, was taken away on a stretcher after the real estate company that owned the flat drastically hiked the rent. Her eviction led to a movement of camps and demonstrations, placing housing at the center of a snap general election called by Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez for November 29.
Tributes and Protests in Madrid
Following the news of her death, protesters wept and embraced in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square on Wednesday night before hundreds marched toward parliament, with some calling the death a “murder.” On Thursday, mourners gathered at an improvised shrine in Sol to lay candles, flowers, and placards. Aitana Lopez, a 25-year-old fashion student and housing protester, stated, She’s the one who started all of this,
as reported by AFP.
Valeria Racu, a spokeswoman for the Madrid Tenants’ Union, said, She didn’t have to die this way. Maricarmen wanted to die in her house.
Luis Rodriguez, a 64-year-old resident, called the eviction outrageous
and described Abascal as yet another victim
of Spain’s housing market.
Sanchez Calls Early Vote After Parliament Fails Housing Measures
The minority coalition government hastily agreed to two decrees providing greater protections against evictions for vulnerable tenants and automatic contract renewals, but failed to pass the measures in parliament. This failure prompted Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to call the early vote on November 29.
Juana Sotillos, a 68-year-old pensioner, criticized the political response, stating that Abascal has been used as a political tool by one side and the other
and that Sanchez has done nothing
on housing during his eight years in power.
Another march is scheduled for Thursday evening from Sol to Abascal’s former home in the Retiro neighbourhood, where mourners have also left candles and flowers. Tenants’ unions have called for a national minute’s silence at noon on Friday, according to AFP.
