Elderly Woman Whose Eviction Sparked Mass Protests in Spain Has Died

Maricarmen Abascal, an 87-year-old Spanish woman whose eviction from her Madrid home set off mass protests, has died in hospital. A tenants' association that had supported her fight against the eviction announced her death on Wednesday.

She died two weeks after police removed her from the flat where she had lived for 70 years, following a dispute with the landlord that had lasted for years. After public outrage, the new owners of the property allowed her to return, offering a lower rent.

Protests and political fallout

The eviction on 23 September sparked demonstrations against the housing crisis under the slogan "Ni una Maricarmen más" ("Not one more Maricarmen"). Protesters set up a camp in Puerta del Sol square in central Madrid, while the government adopted decrees intended to strengthen protections for tenants.

Proposals by the left-wing prime minister Pedro Sánchez's minority government to tackle the housing crisis were rejected in a parliamentary vote on 2 October. On Monday, Sánchez then called an early parliamentary election for 29 November. Spain's two main trade union federations, CCOO and UGT, have also called a one-day general strike on 11 November over the housing crisis.

A new wave of anger

Abascal's death on Wednesday triggered renewed public reaction. In Puerta del Sol, protesters honoured her memory with a minute of silence, while candles and flowers were placed outside her former home. Hundreds of people also marched to parliament, chanting "Murderers, murderers, murderers" and "These are not deaths, they are killings".