Muere Maricarmen, la mujer que encendió la lucha contra los desahucios en España

Maricarmen Abascal, a 87-year-old Spanish woman who sparked the fight against evictions, passed away on Wednesday at the Gregorio Marañón Hospital. The Sindicato de Inquilinas confirmed the news.

On September 23rd, Abascal was evicted from her home in Retiro, where she resided for seven decades. Six years prior, a company purchased her apartment for a fraction of its market value, precisely because she lived there. With a pension of €1,400, Abascal consistently paid her rent, which totaled around €500 each month in various expenses.

In 2020, the owners informed her that she had to vacate the apartment, as the contract had been subrogated twice: first to her mother, who was not listed as a co-owner due to a Franco-era law, and then to her. She faced four eviction attempts since then and did not accept any offers to pay the rent difference (they demanded €1,600) or buy the apartment.