Tens of thousands protest in Spain after failed housing reforms

What the report says

Tens of thousands of people protested across Spain on Saturday, including in Madrid and around 50 other cities, after parliament rejected two emergency housing decrees backed by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s minority left-wing government. The demonstrations came a day after lawmakers voted down the measures, which were aimed at easing pressure on renters and responding to the country’s worsening affordability crisis.

According to Al Jazeera’s report, the protests were driven by rising housing costs and anger over evictions. The movement was galvanized more than a week earlier after the eviction of an 87-year-old pensioner in Madrid, prompting tenants and supporters to set up tents in the capital and call for stronger protections. Marchers demanded affordable housing policies, an end to evictions, and broader reforms, while some also urged a general strike.

The article said most rallies were peaceful, but in Valencia police used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse demonstrators, and some protesters briefly entered a cultural complex before being removed. The rejected decrees were opposed by the Catalan separatist party Junts, which joined the main opposition Popular Party and the far-right Vox party in defeating the measures. The setback adds political pressure on Sanchez and underscores how housing has become a major national issue in Spain.