DOMINANT ANGLE
Lisbon retains from the death of Maricarmen Abascal the image of an octogenarian who became a symbol of the struggle for housing, relayed mainly by the street protests in Madrid.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Maricarmen Abascal, 87, died at Gregorio Marañón hospital in Madrid, where she had been hospitalized since her eviction on September 23 (SAPO Notícias).
- 02
Hundreds of protesters marched from Puerta del Sol to the Congress of Deputies, where two government decrees on housing had been rejected the previous week (Observador).
- 03
A general strike is set for November 11 and protesters promise to continue the fight for the right to housing (Observador).
ANALYSIS
Lisbon, October 8, 2026. The Portuguese press is treating the death of Maricarmen Abascal as an event that is primarily human and social, driven by the streets of Madrid. SAPO Notícias presents the 87-year-old woman as a "symbol of the fight for the right to housing": she died at the Gregorio Marañón hospital in Madrid, where she had been since September 23, the day she was forced to leave the home she had occupied since 1956 in the city center. The announcement came from the Tenants' Union, which recalled one of her phrases: "Lutem, continuem a lutar pelo que é vosso".
SAPO specifies that the eviction was carried out under a court decision that ruled in favor of the investment fund that owns the apartment. Under the slogan "Nem mais uma Maricarmen", thousands of people marched in several Spanish cities to demand deeper reforms, including automatic renewal of leases and measures against real estate speculation. According to the same article, the family, her legal representative, the union, and the owner company, Urbagestión Desarrollo e Inversión SL, had reached an agreement at the end of September.
The Observador's night bulletin highlights the scene from Wednesday evening. Hundreds of people camped out at the Puerta del Sol marched to the Congress of Deputies, where, the previous week, two government decrees on housing had been rejected. The protesters chanted that Maricarmen "não morreu, foi assassinada"; a minute of silence was observed and candles were lit, also in front of the building in the Retiro neighborhood where she had lived for 70 years. The media recalls the images of the old lady being evacuated on a stretcher by firefighters, which have become a symbol of the housing crisis in Spain, and the lease signed by her father in 1956, later passed on to her mother.
The two media outlets are reporting on the upcoming mobilization: the protesters promise not to leave the streets and a general strike is set for November 11. The Spanish political context, including early elections, remains in the background in these two texts, which focus primarily on Maricarmen's personal story and the anger it has sparked.
