IBMT Scotland Secretary Mike Arnott reports from a fundraiser organised and hosted by the PCE Exterior, the external branch of the Spanish Communist Party based in Britain…

On Saturday 17 May, PCE Exterior UK organised ¡No Pasarán! Fest 2025 in Glasgow. It was a celebration of Scotland’s support for the Spanish Republic, focusing on Glasgow’s role in the struggle, and was linked to a Crowdfunder raising money for the IBMT and, in particular, a new memorial plaque at Carbeth, to the city’s north.

The tour group with the flag of the Spanish Republic in front of La Pasionaria statue on Custom House Quay.

The day began with a walking tour of sites of special locations linked to Glasgow’s working-class history and to its International Brigade volunteers. The tour was wonderfully led by Henry Bell of Radical Glasgow Tours.

Fife band 'The Other Side' performs at the Wild Duck.

In the evening, a healthy crowd attended the Wild Duck to hear music from Fife band ‘The Other Side’ and a UK debut by Brussels four-piece 'Zona Norte'.

'Zona Norte' from Brussels at the fundraiser.

Speeches and stalls helped create a charged atmosphere of cultural resistance and celebration.

IBMT Scotland Secretary Mike Arnott.

Thanks go to PCE Exterior UK, assisted by the IBMT, Hope not Hate Glasgow, CPB (Communist Party of Britain) and the Young Communist League Glasgow, and to the bands and to Henry.

Read more about the Carbeth memorial and the hutters it honours on our blog.

News from the annual Glasgow commemoration held on Saturday 21 September at La Pasionaria Statue, Custom House Quay …

Neil Anderson presided at the commemoration on behalf of hosts Hope not Hate Glasgow.

A large gathering heard speeches by Mike Arnott, IBMT Scotland Secretary, Africa Moreno, PCE Exterior, Nathan Hennerbry, MB Scotland Youth Committee, Jennifer McCarey, Glasgow TUC and Tommy Campbell, Aberdeen XV International Brigade Commemoration Committee.

La Pasionaria Statue, Custom House Quay, Glasgow.

Neil Hennerbry spoke about how the legacy of the brigaders featured in Hope not Hate’s anti-racist and anti-fascist work in the city. Mike Arnott shared recent research discoveries about the 1938 funeral in Vic, Catalunya, of young Glasgow nurse Chrissie Wallace and the newly rediscovered Soldiers Tree memorial at Carbeth. He also marked the death in August of Glaswegian Allan Craig, whose work to commemorate his father, Dundee-born brigader Allan Craig, had initiated the annual ceremony at Tarancón in Spain.

Africa Moreno of PCE Exterior.

Africa Moreno paid tribute to the memory of the Glasgow brigaders and their fight against fascism, and for democracy, in Spain. Nathan drew parallels between the fight in Spain and the current struggles against fascism and the far right across Europe, including in Scotland. Jennifer recounted the history of the Glasgow memorial, how La Pasionaria’s symbolism echoed the role of all Spain’s women, and the female volunteers, during the Civil War, and how its unveiling drew a small and very rare Glasgow phenomenon: a Tory street protest.

Tommy Campbell gave the background to the replica of Aberdeen’s famous Spanish Republican flag and performed a couple of poems, including Brian Bilston’s memorable ‘Why I dislike the Daily Mail’.

At the close of proceedings, RMT hosted a visit just along the riverside to see the Blockade Runners’ Memorial.

Attendees from Perth, Dundee and Aberdeen.