The 97-year-old former city bus driver, the last surviving Scot to have served with the International Brigades, was back for the re- dedication of the newly- refurbished statue of La Pasionaria on the banks of the River Clyde
Depicting Dolores Ibarruri, a leader of the Spanish republican movement, it commemorates the 2,100 British volunteers who served in Spain, 534 of whom died and 65 of whom were Glaswegians.
Mr Watters had signed up to go to Spain with the Scottish Ambulance Unit. Addressing a crowd of around 100 at the re- dedication ceremony, Councillor Gordon Matheson, city council leader, said: “The ambulance unit worked at the front line in the battlefields of Spain to aid wounded fighters and volunteers from across the world.
“In two years, Thomas witnessed horrors, including a terrifying moment when he had to scramble for cover in a village as German aircraft dropped bombs. His vehicle was destroyed.”
Mr Watters who was awarded dual nationality by the Spanish government last year, said: “It’s important to be here, to re-dedicate the statue to La Pasioniara and also to remember what the International Brigades did and how they suffered. They weren’t fighting men – they were individuals who felt so terrible about the spread of fascism that they had do to something.
“I made many friends there and I still have one or two, but the way the years go, there are not so many left now. We’re all in our 90s.
“Two of the people who got dual nationality last year – one was a woman – were 100. We mustn’t forget that many women volunteered to work in Spain too.”
The ambulances driven by Mr Watters and others were often bombed and destroyed.
He said: “People have often asked if we were deliberately bombed or shot at, but if you go into a target, whatever it was, you have to take what comes.
“We had quite a few narrow shaves, mind you, but we were fortunate. Plenty of others didn’t make it, unfortunately. Some had very narrow escapes.”
Asked if the battle against fascism had ultimately been won, Mr Watters said: “You have to be vigilant. We must learn from history. Don’t build up hatreds –that is no good. We should learn from history how to prevent things happening.”
Mr Watters, who has lived for many years in St Albans, Hertfordshire, added that he barely recognised modern-day Glasgow.
“I don’t know it so well,” he said. “I knew it so well when I was a bus driver all those years ago, but it is totally different now. Everything in life changes, of course, and I’ve been away for 70-odd years.”
Produced by the Liverpool-based sculptor Arthur Dooley, the statue was erected in 1979. When its fabric deteriorated, a £10,000 restoration project was launched, backed by the city council, Glasgow City Heritage Trust, the STUC and International Brigades organisations.
Mr Matheson said the council will assume responsibility for its maintenance from now on.”
Councillor John McKenzie presented Mr Watters with a quaich engraved with Glasgow’s coat of arms.
