MADRID: An 87-year-old Madrid woman whose eviction triggered nationwide protests over Spain’s chronic housing crisis and a political debate that culminated in early elections died on Wednesday (Oct 7), a tenants’ union said.
“We are sorry to announce that Maricarmen passed away today,” the Madrid Tenants’ Union said in a statement about Maricarmen Abascal, adding that her cause marked “a turning point in the history of this country”.
Abascal became a symbol of Spain’s housing market on Sep 23 when she was evicted from her life-long Madrid home on a stretcher after the real estate firm that owned the apartment drastically hiked the rent.
Outrage at her eviction triggered national demonstrations, with hundreds of people camping in Madrid’s Puerta del Sol square in the most symbolic of the protests.
The movement piled pressure on the minority leftist government to present urgent housing measures, including more restrictions on evictions and the automatic renewal of tenant contracts.
