Maricarmen Abascal died on 7 October, two weeks after being evicted from her Madrid home and hospitalised at Gregorio Marañón. The 87-year-old’s death has returned housing rights to Spain’s political debate: about 20,000 people joined a memorial march, while the circumstances of the eviction drew fresh scrutiny of public institutions.
Her case has taken thousands of people into the streets. It has also put property owners and public authorities under scrutiny. Police conduct and court orders have drawn separate criticism. No public evidence establishes that the eviction medically caused her death.
About 20,000 people joined a peaceful march organised by the Sindicato de Inquilinas. The route ran from the camp at Puerta del Sol to the flat where Abascal lived. Protesters called for the right to housing, bringing the dispute into public view after it had already reached the courts through the earlier camp case.
Abascal had lived for more than 70 years in the flat on Alcalde Sáinz de Baranda street in Madrid’s Retiro district, the Sindicato de Inquilinas said.
The memorial action extended beyond the march. The Sindicato de Inquilinas called for a minute of silence at 12:00 on Friday in workplaces and places of study across Spain. CCOO and UGT backed the initiative and urged workers to take part. Reports also described preparations for a 24-hour general strike focused on the housing crisis.
“Maricarmen has managed to bring the housing debate back to the centre,” said Beatriz Duro, who represented Abascal as her lawyer. Her statement reflected the political reach of a case that began at one Madrid address and became a national argument over responsibility when an eviction is enforced.
EFE and CNN reported the eviction and subsequent hospitalisation, and both reported Abascal’s death. They noted that the specific medical cause had not been publicly disclosed.
During the reading of the manifesto, Alicia del Río, spokesperson for the Sindicato de Inquilinas, blamed speculators and what she described as rentier laws that allow such situations. She criticised governments that pass those laws or leave them unchanged. She also accused the judiciary of applying them instead of listening to human rights courts. Police drew criticism because officers execute eviction orders. The union made political accusations; they do not establish legal or medical responsibility for Abascal’s death.
On 28 September, representatives of Abascal and the owner, Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL, agreed that she could return to the flat after leaving hospital. She died before she was discharged and never made it back home, EFE reported.
The timing has added political pressure. The week closes after the election call, while the left continues negotiating the Frente Amplio candidacy. Ada Colau is willing to lead it provided Podemos is included. Housing has so entered negotiations over the political alternative taking shape ahead of the vote.
A separate economic dispute now sits alongside the housing debate. The president of CEPYME opposed the proposal to raise the minimum wage, pointing to the difficulty of keeping businesses open. The source provides no further details of that response. Its inclusion places social demands alongside pressure on employers during the election period.
The case began with an eviction from a Madrid home on 23 September. Abascal was later hospitalised at Gregorio Marañón and died on 7 October. The minute of silence extends the protest into workplaces and places of study beyond Puerta del Sol. The manifesto identifies those blamed by the tenants’ union, while the agreement with Urbagestión shows negotiations continued after the eviction. Political negotiations continue as those accusations remain in public view.
The available reporting does not establish a medical cause of death or assign responsibility to any specific party, whether a landlord or a public authority.
