Spain: Protests and Political Row After Death of 87-Year-Old Maricarmen
Theo Al Jazeera English
Thousands of Spaniards have protested over the death of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, who was forcibly removed from her Madrid home. Her case has fueled nationwide demonstrations and led to snap elections, while memorials in parliament have sparked accusations of political exploitation.
After the death of Maria del Carmen Abascal, an 87-year-old woman forcibly removed from her home in Madrid, thousands of Spaniards took to the streets outside the national parliament building. The case has ignited protests across the country and led to the calling of snap elections.
Meanwhile, inside the legislature, lawmakers clashed over how to honor Abascal, trading accusations that each side was exploiting the case for political gain ahead of the vote.
Maricarmen Abascal died on Wednesday after being hospitalized for severe anxiety and exhaustion. She was carried out of her Madrid home on a stretcher on September 23. During her hospital stay she reached an agreement to return to her home, but did not make it back before she died. The cause of death has not been released.
'They killed her'
"They made her die of a broken heart," Diana, one of the protesters, told Al Jazeera. "Taking an 87-year-old woman out of the home she lived in for 70 years — that is murder." Diana joined thousands of others demonstrating outside Spain's parliament building.
Outside Abascal's home, people left flowers, candles, handwritten letters and children's drawings in her memory.
"These are not deaths; these are murders," protesters chanted as they marched on Thursday from a protest camp in Puerta del Sol square to Abascal's former home.
Memorials in the legislature
Protests over the housing shortage and soaring rents that followed the eviction pushed Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to call snap elections for November 29, after parliament failed to pass emergency housing measures.
In the Madrid regional legislature, memorials for Abascal proved divisive as lawmakers accused one another of exploiting the case before the election.
Alberto Nunez Feijoo, leader of the conservative opposition People's Party (PP), accused Sanchez and the Socialists of trying to turn the housing crisis to their political advantage before the vote.
"We will not allow an attempt to manipulate the feelings of Spaniards; all of this has happened during the eight years they have been in power. It will not succeed," Feijoo said.
The PP, which holds an absolute majority in Madrid's regional and local councils, refused to hold a minute's silence in her memory. Instead, hard-left lawmakers held a minute's silence outside City Hall and gave Abascal a 60-second standing ovation during a tense debate in the regional assembly, while PP lawmakers remained seated with their arms crossed.
Left-wing parties criticized the conservatives for rejecting legislation in parliament aimed at curbing soaring rents.
Support for intervention in the housing market
A survey by the state polling agency CIS carried out in June and published on Thursday found that 76.3 percent of Spaniards support market intervention to guarantee access to housing, while 79 percent believe the right to housing should take priority over treating housing as a market commodity.
Ombudsman Angel Gabilondo said tackling the housing crisis would require a greater commitment from all levels of government. He said his office is preparing a report on housing and reiterated proposals to expand public housing, restrict tourist rentals, increase rental subsidies and strengthen protections against evictions for vulnerable households.
