Thousands march in Spain over eviction of 87-year-old woman Maricarmen Abascal
Thousands of people marched through Madrid on Saturday to protest the eviction earlier this week of an 87-year-old woman from her lifelong home, calling for greater protection for tenants. Images of Maricarmen Abascal being carried from her Madrid flat on a stretcher on Wednesday after police broke down her door have thrust Spain’s housing crisis back into the spotlight ahead of a general…
On Saturday, thousands gathered in Madrid to protest the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal from her lifelong home. The demonstration, which authorities estimated at around 25,000 participants with organizers claiming 300,000 attended, called for stronger tenant protections amid Spain's housing crisis. Abascal, a symbol of the issue, was carried out of her apartment on a stretcher after police broke down her door following a 275% rent increase.
Protesters marched through central Madrid, rattling keys, blowing whistles, and holding banners demanding measures to curb rising housing costs and make evictions more difficult. Alicia del Rio, a spokesperson for the Madrid Tenants' Union, said Abascal's eviction "marks a turning point." Abascal urged Spaniards to join the protest in a hospital video message, urging them to "fight and help change the laws that have allowed me to be evicted."
The government has pledged to address housing, but faces pressure to pass a package of measures, dubbed the "Maricarmen decree," which includes automatic renewal of rental contracts and further eviction restrictions. Spain's housing market is described as "impossible" to navigate, with rising rents outpacing salaries and a shortage of homes estimated at 700,000.
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