An elderly woman whose forced eviction from her home of 70 years brought thousands of Spanish people out in protest, has died, Madrid’s tenants union said. Maricarmen Abascal, 87, had been hospitalised since 23 September, when she was forcibly removed from her home of seven decades. Abascal became embroiled in a years-long eviction row after her corporate landlord increased her rent from €500 to €2,650. The company later reduced it to €1,650, which still exceeded Abascal’s monthly pension. Last week, the government fast-tracked approval on a package of reforms including a temporary ban on evictions of vulnerable people, but opposition parties blocked the reforms in parliament. On Friday, prime minister Pedro Sanchez called a snap general election, saying: “We must mobilise and secure a much broader progressive majority in parliament, one that allows us to overcome the elites.” Abascal’s family and lawyer had worked with the union to negotiate Abascal’s return home at a reduced rent once she was discharged from hospital, but she did not make it home. During vigils held in the capital mourning Abascal’s death on Wednesday night, many condemned the government’s inaction to prevent soaring rents and profiteering by corporate landlords like Urbagestión – the company that has owned Abascal’s building since 2018. “She was killed by the capitalist system,” said protester Nora Caballero.

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