MADRID: Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Madrid and other cities in Spain on Saturday to demand affordable housing, a day after lawmakers rejected relief measures for tenants.
The demonstrations extended a crisis that has gone on for more than a week, triggered by the eviction last month of a pensioner, 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal, from her Madrid flat.
The defeat was another political setback for Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and has renewed questions over whether his minority government can survive until the next scheduled general election in 2027.
His government's proposed measures, which included automatic renewal of tenancy contracts and restrictions on evicting vulnerable tenants, were voted down by opposition parties on Friday in Spain's parliament.
