The forced eviction of an 87-year-old in Spain has ignited public anger over the housing crisis, bringing tens of thousands of people out to street protests.

According to the AP and AFP news agencies, tens of thousands of citizens marched through downtown Madrid on September 26, local time, urging the government to lower housing costs and implement tenant protection measures.

Citizens set up about 100 tents in Puerta del Sol, a bustling square in Madrid, and spent the night there on September 26.

On the night of September 27, more protesters, including families, joined the overnight sit-in to denounce Spain's housing crisis.

The protests were triggered by the forced eviction of an 87-year-old female tenant from her home.

Maria del Carmen Abascal, who had lived in the upscale Retiro district of Madrid for over 70 years, was carried out on a stretcher by police who broke down her door on September 23.

As footage of the eviction spread across Spain, simmering public frustration over surging rent and housing purchase costs boiled over.

According to the Madrid Tenants Union, Abascal had lived as a tenant in this apartment for more than 70 years, dating back to her parents' time.

When the building's owner changed in 2018, Abascal was given the opportunity to buy the apartment, but her financial situation made it unaffordable.

Afterward, the real estate investment firm that purchased the apartment drastically raised her monthly rent from 500 euros (770,000 won) to 2,650 euros (4.1 million won).

Although the rent was later lowered to 1,650 euros (2.55 million won) through adjustments, this was still an impossible sum for Abascal to pay on her pension.

In the end, Abascal was driven out of the home where she had spent her entire life.

Hospitalized following the forced eviction, Abascal shared a message through the Tenants Union on September 26, saying, "I hope what happened to me serves as a catalyst so that it doesn't happen to others," expressing her wish that her case would help lead to relevant law reforms.

The Tenants Union posted on social media, urging citizens to join the protests by stating, "We can take no more. Either the rental system collapses, or the government does."

Citizens participating in the protests on September 26 denounced that the housing market has reached an unbearable point.

Enrique Ortega de Miguel, a 38-year-old graphic designer who lives with his mother, told AFP, "Finding an affordable home is a struggle in itself, and you have to live in fear that you might be kicked out even of that."

Film director Pedro Almodovar, who won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival in 2024 for his film The Room Next Door, also came out to the square.

In an interview with Spanish public broadcaster RTVE, he pointed out that "this incident was the final straw" and that Spain's current housing situation is "absolutely intolerable."

In major Spanish cities, housing prices have soared sharply due to chronic supply shortages, the conversion to short-term rentals driven by the expansion of the tourism industry, an influx of population, and foreign speculation.

Madrid real estate agency Idealista estimates that monthly rents have nearly doubled over the past 10 years.

The Youth Council of Spain (CJE) also criticized that young workers are facing a reality where they must spend 98.7% of their wages on housing costs.

Housing issues in Spain are also a hot political issue ahead of next year's general election.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of the Socialist Party mentioned Abascal's case at a Socialist Party rally on September 27, attempting to calm public opinion by stating, "The government is doing everything in its power to prepare housing-related bills."

The bills mentioned by Prime Minister Sanchez are expected to include measures such as automatic renewal of lease contracts and additional restrictions on evictions.

However, because the Socialist Party does not hold a majority in parliament, the passage of the bills remains uncertain.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)