Protesters began a third day camped outside Madrid’s regional administration on Monday, opposing the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal and demanding stronger tenant protections amid soaring rents and a housing shortage; about 30,000 marched Saturday.
By Monday, hundreds of tents had filled central Puerta del Sol, where regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso has her office. Police evicted Abascal last week on a stretcher from the home she had lived in for more than 70 years, under an order secured by the investment fund that bought her apartment; demonstrators outside the building clashed with police. The Tenants’ Union said further protests were planned across Spain on Monday.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said Sunday that his government was working to enact a housing decree in parliament by Tuesday, which would bring immediate relief for tenants. Average rents have doubled over the past decade, far outpacing salary growth. The central bank says Spain has a 750,000-home deficit; about 120,000 homes are built annually, one-sixth the pre-2008 level. On Friday, Ayuso blamed Sánchez’s government for failing to address housing during its eight years in power.
