>> Sreenivasan: TODAY, SPAIN SAW

ITS BIGGEST PUBLIC DISPLAY OF

OPPOSITION TO SECESSION BY THE

CATALONIA REGION.

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF

PRO-UNION CATALANS TURNED OUT IN

THE STREETS OF BARCELONA, THE

CAPITAL OF THE BREAKAWAY REGION.

TWO DAYS AGO, CATALONIA'S

REGIONAL PARLIAMENT REAFFIRMED

LAST MONTH'S INDEPENDENCE

REFERENDUM, AND SPAIN'S CENTRAL

GOVERNMENT ASSERTED DIRECT

CONTROL OVER THE REGION,

DISMISSING ITS LEADERS AND

CALLING FOR NEW ELECTIONS.

NEWSHOUR WEEKEND SPECIAL

CORRESPONDENT MALCOLM BRABANT

HAS BEEN COVERING SPAIN'S

POLITICAL CRISIS AND JOINS US

FROM BARCELONA.

MALCOLM, HELP US FIGURE THIS

OUT HERE.

ON THE ONE HAND, YOU HAVE

CATALONIANS WHO ARE SAYING "WE

ARE FREE," AND ON THE OTHER HAND

YOU HAVE THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT

SAYING "NO, YOU'RE FIRED, AND

WE'RE GOING FIND SOME NEW PEOPLE

TO RUN THIS."

>> WELL, THIS DEMONSTRATION THIS

AFTERNOON REALLY DEMONSTRATED

JUST HOW COMPLEX THIS WHOLE

ISSUE IS, AND THERE WERE VARYING

ESTIMATES OF JUST HOW LARGE THIS

CROWD WAS.

THE ORGANIZERS WERE SAYING THAT

THERE WAS SOMETHING LIKE OVER A

MILLION PEOPLE HERE, BUT THE

LOCAL POLICE SAID IT WAS ABOUT

300,000 PEOPLE.

BUT CERTAINLY, THE MAIN STREETS

OF BARCELONA TODAY WERE FULL OF

SPANISH FLAGS, WITH PEOPLE

DEMANDING UNION, SAYING THAT THE

INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT BY THE

LOCAL GOVERNMENT HERE WAS

COMPLETELY ILLEGAL, AND THEY

WANT SPAIN TO EXERT CONTROL OVER

THIS REGION, AND INSTITUTE

ARTICLE 155, WHICH MEANS THAT

THE SPANISH CAN HAVE DIRECT

CONTROL.

THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE

HAPPENING.

>> Sreenivasan: TELL US, HOW DO

THEY INSTITUTE DIRECT CONTROL?

I MEAN, WHO ARE THEIR

INSTRUMENTS?

IS IT THE MILITARY?

IS IT THE POLICE FORCE?

>> WELL, THE POLICE FORCE ARE

ABSOLUTELY CRITICAL.

IT'S THE LOCAL FORCE, IS THE

MOSSOS; THE NATIONAL POLICE

FORCE, THE GUARDIA CIVIL.

AND SO, THIS IS AN ABSOLUTELY

CRUCIAL, SORT OF AREA,IN TERMS

OF EXERTING CONTROL, BECAUSE IF

THEY ALLOW THE MOSSOS, THE LOCAL

POLICE TO POLICE THE STREETS,

THEN THAT'S ACTUALLY GOING TO

HELP TO CALM THINGS DOWN.

IF THE GUARDIA CIVIL COMES IN,

THEN TENSIONS ARE DEFINITELY

GOING TO RISE.

>> Sreenivasan: WHAT HAPPENS TO

MR. PUIGDEMONT, THE GUY WHO LED

THIS REFERENDUM IN THE FIRST

PLACE?

>> A VERY GOOD QUESTION.

WELL, HE'S BEEN DISMISSED, AND

THE PERSON WHO'S SUPPOSEDLY

RUNNING THE CATALONIAN AUTHORITY

NOW IS SPAIN'S DEPUTY PRIME

MINISTER, AND THE BIG QUESTION

ON EVERYBODY'S LIPS HERE IS

WHETHER OR NOT MR. PUIGDEMONT IS

GOING TO BE ARRESTED.

THERE WAS SOME SORT OF THOUGHT

THAT HE MIGHT BE ARRESTED

TOMORROW, AND THE LOCAL

INDEPENDENTISTAS HERE, WHO ARE

SAYING THEY ARE GOING TO THROW

HUMAN CHAINS AROUND PLACES OF

LOCAL GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY TO

PROTECT THE PEOPLE AT THE HEART

OF THIS INDEPENDENCE MOVEMENT.

BUT THERE ARE SOME-- WE WERE

TALKING, AS I SAID, TO THE

POLICE UNION HERE AND THEY THINK

THAT PERHAPS, THAT SPAIN WON'T

NECESSARILY GO IN TO ARREST MR.

PUIGDEMONT, BECAUSE THAT, ONCE

AGAIN, WILL SORT OF SWELL UP

INDEPENDENCE FEELING AND CREATE

A SORT OF GREAT ANTAGONISM.

AND SO, WHAT SEEMS TO BE

HAPPENING HERE IS THIS GREAT

SORT OF SENSE OF LIMBO.

PEOPLE ARE WAITING FOR THINGS TO

HAPPEN, BUT NOTHING SEEMS TO BE

A REALLY BIG GOING ON.

YOU WOULDN'T THINK THIS IS A

COUNTRY IN THE MIDDLE OF A HUGE

CRISIS-- THE ATMOSPHERE IS

REALLY QUITE SORT OF OKAY.

TOURISTS ARE WALKING AROUND,

EVERYBODY SEEMS TO BE HAVING

FUN.

NO SOLDIERS ON THE STREETS OR

ANYTHING LIKE THAT, AND MAYBE

THIS IS SPAIN'S POLICY, IN A

WAY, TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT

THERE IS NO INCREASE IN TENSION,

WHICH IS TO DO NOTHING AND LET

THINGS LIE, UNTIL MAYBE THOSE

ELECTIONS WHICH THEY'VE CALLED

ON DECEMBER THE 20th.

>> Sreenivasan: ALL RIGHT,

MALCOLM BRABANT, JOINING US FROM

BARCELONA TONIGHT.

THANKS SO MUCH.

>> YOU'RE VERY WELCOME.