Mundo · Housing and evictionsMaricarmen Never Returned Home. Spain’s Housing Strike Call ContinuesEscrito 14 de outubro de 2026 às 18:34 UTCVerTranscrição0:07On October 8th, we reported Mara Carmen's death.0:10Now unions are pursuing a nationwide strike.0:12The November 11th call was already announced then.0:16The latest development is that UGT was still pressing ahead on October 13th.0:20Thousands have marched in her memory and politicians have fought over whether to0:23honor her with a minute's silence.0:25Other vulnerable renters still face a practical question.0:28What protection can reach them before they lose their homes?0:31Thousands walked from Puerto del Sol to Mara Carmen's former home on October 8th.0:36The march began at the protest camp and ended in Madrid's Ibiza neighborhood in0:40Rotiro.0:40Mourners installed an improvised altar outside the building.0:44The memorial crowd was estimated at about 20,000, although there's no confirmed0:48count.0:49The tenants' union had announced an 8 o'clock evening start.0:52The march followed candlelit vigils the previous night in Puerto del Sol and outside0:56her former home.0:57A separate estimate put demonstrations across Spain at about 20,000 after her death.1:02Their dates and overlap with the Madrid march aren't clear, so those figures can't1:06be added.1:06Earlier crowds of tens of thousands belonged to the preceding weekend's protests.1:10Protesters also stayed in tents at Puerta del Sol.1:13Hundreds were described camping there in the earlier demonstrations.1:16Her death brought fresh mourning to a place already occupied by people demanding1:20affordable housing and stronger protection against eviction.1:23Police and judicial officials carried Maria del Carmen Abascal out of her home on a1:27stretcher on September 23.1:29She was 87 and known as Mara Carmen.1:31Police cordoned off the street and removed protesters.1:34She'd resisted three earlier eviction attempts and had a connection to the home1:38stretching back about seven decades.1:40Mara Carmen died at Gregorio Marinon Hospital on October 7th.1:44She'd been hospitalized after the eviction because of her fragile health.1:48Her lawyer, Beatriz Durow, confirmed her death without giving a cause.1:52Campaigners blamed the ordeal, but no medical explanation has been disclosed.1:56Mara Carmen was evicted on September 23rd.1:59Public pressure helped secure a return arrangement on September 29th.2:03It reportedly offered eight years, with rent no higher than 30% of her income.2:08She died on October 7th before she could return.2:10Her return depended on leaving hospital, and she was never discharged.2:14The Madrid Tenants' Union said the arrangement came too late.2:17Whether a final lease was signed, and what the rent would have been in Euros, still2:21isn't clear.2:22Marikarman couldn't afford the steep increase associated with the company that2:26bought her flat.2:27The proposed rise was reportedly 230%.2:30Earlier tenant accounts described 275%.2:33Those figures haven't been reconciled with the rent amounts carried in earlier2:37coverage.2:37One earlier account put the monthly rent at 500 Euros, rising to 2,650.2:43The owner, Herbogestion, reportedly denied demanding 2,650 Euros.2:48Those amounts would mean a 430% increase, with the final rent 5.3 times the starting2:54amount.2:55A later 1,650 Euro offer was described as 300 Euros above her pension.3:00That implies a 1,350 Euro pension, while another account put it near 1,000.3:06Her actual pension hasn't been confirmed.3:08The rent dispute remains unresolved, even though the human outcome is clear.3:11Three institutions refused official minutes of silence on October 8th.3:15At Madrid's Regional Assembly, the People's Party blocked a proposal from the3:18Socialists and MAS Madrid.3:20Those opposition groups held their own silence outside before the session.3:24The Senate also refused an institutional tribute.3:26Opposition members honored Mara Carmen outside Madrid's City Hall after the3:30municipal government declined an official commemoration.3:33The Socialists and MAS Madrid held a silence outside Cibelais.3:36PP and Vox didn't join.3:38Opposition members also remembered her in their speeches inside.3:41The separate tribute went ahead, despite the refusal of an official one.3:45It doesn't settle the competing descriptions of whether opposition members3:49overturned an attempted block inside the council chamber.3:52PP leader Alberto Núñez Fejo accused Pedro Sanchez's government of manipulating3:57public emotion and held Sanchez responsible for the eviction.4:00The PP argued that political opponents were exploiting Mara Carmen's death.4:03Fejo made the accusation on October 8th.4:06Far-right figures also cast doubt on the account of her death without supplying4:09medical evidence.4:10Vox claimed she would have had a home if she'd been a migrant from North Africa.4:14It offered no evidence for that claim.4:16Sanchez offered condolences on October 7th, as did Housing Minister Isabel Rodriguez4:21and Feijo.4:22Sanchez has made tenant protection central to his campaign.4:25Opponents criticize his eight years in office, while he says regional authorities4:29obstructed his housing measures.4:30Ombudsman Ángel Gabalando called for cooperation to prevent vulnerable people's4:35evictions and provide enough social housing.4:37On October 14th, Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares linked the election to the4:41housing decree defeat and argued that social and fundamental rights were at stake.4:46Albarez framed the contest as a choice between a progressive government and a4:50reactionary coalition.4:51That's his political assessment of the election's stakes.4:54Sanchez announced the election on October 5th, two days before Mara Carmen died.4:59An earlier date of October 7th was wrong.5:01The scheduled polling day remains November 29th.5:04The announcement followed Parliament's rejection of the government's emergency5:08housing decrees.5:09Congress rejected the first decree by 178 votes to 172 and the second5:15by 184 to 166.5:18Opposition votes included the PP, Vox, and Juntz.5:21The housing protests formed part of the political pressure surrounding those5:24defeats.5:25The cabinet approved 21 replacement housing measures on October 6th, and both5:29replacement decrees were published on October 7th.5:32One concerns stability of rental contracts.5:34The other concerns housing social function and affordable supply.5:37Their precise protection for individual tenants remains unclear.5:41We still don't know whether Parliament's standing body, which operates after5:44dissolution, has validated the replacements' reported start dates are October 8th5:48for broader provisions and November 15th for lease stability, but eligibility and5:52exceptions remain unclear.5:54There's also no confirmed agenda placing a housing vote at the possible October 16th5:58sitting.5:59New renters faced larger increases than existing tenants in the National Rental6:02Price Index.6:03In 2023, Rents rose 2.6% overall.6:07New contracts rose 4.1%, while existing contracts rose 2.4%.6:12New contract rent growth reached 8.8% in 2024.6:16The overall increase was 3.5%, and existing contracts rose 2.8%.6:22These are historical annual figures for Spain, and they don't measure Madrid's rents6:25today.6:26Rent payment data show another gap.6:28Increases generally stayed below 3% when the tenant and landlord didn't change.6:33New contract growth exceeded 10% year-on-year at the end of 2025.6:37That's a separate measure based on direct debit payments.6:39Those figures show why one sweeping rent claim can mislead.6:43They don't support saying every tenant's rent doubled over a decade.6:47Asking prices, signed contracts, and actual payments describe different parts of the6:51housing market.6:52UGT and CCOO agreed to a nationwide 24-hour strike on October 5th before Merrick6:58Carmen's death.6:59Their joint notice fixed November 11th two days later.7:02They want decent wages that make decent housing affordable.7:05Alongside action against prices eroding purchasing power, UGT leader Pepe Alvarez7:10was still defending the November 11 action on October 13th.7:14He called for better wages, solutions to the housing crisis, and progress in7:18collective bargaining.7:19The initial agreement required union ratification, whose formal votes haven't been7:22confirmed.7:23Mara Carmen never regained her home.7:25For other vulnerable tenants, Cabinet approval and publication have happened, but7:29the replacement's enforceable reach and parliamentary status remain unclear.7:33The nationwide strike is called for November 11th, followed by the general election7:37on November 29th.Ler o artigoCronologia da históriaHeyDexO vídeo curto ↗Quem noticiou o quêPontos noticiados por mais de um órgão de comunicação✓Parliament’s rejection of housing measuresConfirmado de forma independente · 12 órgãos✓Sánchez’s snap election dateConfirmado de forma independente · 11 órgãos✓Abascal’s eviction and its role in protestsConfirmado de forma independente · 8 órgãos✓Polls and prospects for a PP–Vox governmentConfirmado de forma independente · 7 órgãos✓Sánchez’s announcement of an early electionConfirmado de forma independente · 6 órgãosSánchez’s electoral hopes for housing policy6 órgãosAbascal’s removal from her home5 órgãosCoalition’s loss of its parliamentary majority5 órgãosAbascal’s death4 órgãosCabinet meeting to dissolve Parliament4 órgãos✓Scale of Madrid housing protestsConfirmado de forma independente · 3 órgãosPoll forecast for a PP–Vox coalition3 órgãosMigration into Spain’s North African territory3 órgãosAgreement for Abascal to return home3 órgãosCada linha é a afirmação tal como a registámos da reportagem desse órgão. Comparado a 14 de outubro de 2026 às 17:37 UTC.
