Minutes, membership lists, press cuttings and photographs, 1992-2007, of the Scottish Far East Prisoners of War Association, and papers relating to `Beyond the Bamboo Screen: Scottish Prisoners of War under the Japanese`, a book compiled by Tom McGowran, OBE.

The Scottish Far East Prisoners of War Association was established in the years following the end of the Second World War. The Association’s purpose was to offer practical and emotional support to survivors of wartime Japanese prison camps and their families.

One means of support was the Association’s newsletter, `Scottish Pow-Wow`, in which survivors were able to write about their imprisonment. The circulation of the newsletter was primarily limited to members, and it provided an outlet through which survivors could share their experiences with those who had encountered similar conditions.

The papers include minutes of the Association in its final years until it was disbanded in 2003. Also included are papers relating to `Beyond the Bamboo screen: Scottish prisoners of war under the Japanese`, which was compiled by Tom McGowran, OBE, editor of `Scottish Pow-Wow`, and published in 1999. The book was based on a selection of the many stories included in the newsletter during its existence.

The archive was donated by Mrs Iris McGowran, MBE, Tom’s widow. Iris McGowran had latterly fulfilled various roles on the Association’s committee, and completed its winding down in 2003. Both Iris and Tom had been heavily involved in the Association, and travelled together on a number of occasions to visit the site of his wartime imprisonment.