Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Spanish cities to protest the country’s real estate crisis following the forced eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal. The demonstrations also come after the government’s failure to pass emergency legislation to help tenants. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had sought to ban evictions of vulnerable tenants until 2030, impose a two-year extension of rent freezes for existing leases and introduce stricter rules for short-term rentals. The opposition argued that the proposals, which were rejected in parliament on Friday, would exacerbate the situation by reducing housing supply. On Saturday, protesters demanded housing measures and some called a general strike. Image: The government said 70,000 people joined a protest in Madrid. Photo: Reuters “It’s a shame,” said Nando de Angulo, 26, who joined the protest in Madrid. “It only shows that it is we, the people, who have to adapt to the political parties, and not the politicians to what the people want, and this cannot continue like this.” Sánchez could call early elections for November after the legislation failed to pass, Spanish media reported after his legislation was repealed. However, Sánchez’s office declined to comment on the reports. Read more from Sky News: North Korea ‘fires ballistic missile’ Ten injured as car hits crowd in Australia In Valencia, protesters clashed with police, who fired rubber bullets and tear gas to break up the protests. Around 30 protesters entered the City of Arts and Sciences, an iconic cultural building in the city, before police removed them. Other demonstrations in 50 Spanish cities were peaceful. Around 70,000 protesters took part in the demonstration in Madrid, the Spanish government said on Saturday. Image: Maricarmen Abascal attending a protest in May. File photo: Reuters Mrs Abascal was removed from her home in Madrid last month after being given just 30 minutes to leave the property with only essential belongings. The apartment, in the capital’s prosperous Retiro neighborhood, had been acquired by an investment fund that wanted to drastically increase its rent. Mrs. Abascal, a wheelchair user, was taken to the hospital on a stretcher after her eviction. He has since been told he can return to the apartment he has lived in for decades, said his lawyer Beatriz Duro. UrbaGestion, the fund that owns Abascal’s apartment, on Monday offered him a preliminary agreement that would allow him to return home if he accepts its terms. “She should never have been forced to leave,” Duro told reporters. “I hope that this case serves to provide a collective response to the real estate crisis.” Duro also criticized UrbaGestion for refusing until recently to negotiate or hold talks.
