Not Ours To Carry

19/06/2026

Today, 19 June, is the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict.

More than 280,000 cases were documented in Tigray between 2020 and 2022. 25 military convictions have followed. Behind that number are women who were r***d and tortured, then told it never happened.

The scars are theirs. The silence is ours.

Birhan Gebrekirstos Mezgbo, one of the three protagonists of Not Ours to Carry, and director Veronica Blecker wrote about it for Index on Censorship.

Read the piece:

Between 2020 and 2022, more than 280,000 cases of conflict-related sexual violence were documented in the region

16/06/2026

Proud to announce that Not Ours to Carry has been selected for the Sevil Beynəlxalq Qadın Sənədli Film Festivalı this July.

The film follows three Tigrayan women, Birhan Gebrekirstos Mezgbo, Rita Kahsay, and Berkti Haile, demanding accountability for conflict-related sexual violence during the 2020-2022 Tigray war. It features anonymous survivor testimony and hand-drawn animation.

The scars are theirs. The silence is ours.

🎬 notourstocarry.com

15/06/2026

“Even though the fighting has stopped, Tigray is not at peace. All the women who were r***d, my sisters, are still in pain. And yet no one has been held accountable.”

Birhan changed her career from engineering to humanitarian work to carry their voices.

280,000+ women. 25 convictions.

Not Ours to Carry is a 38-minute documentary. Learn more at the link in bio

02/06/2026

Martin Plaut, who has covered the Horn of Africa for 30 years, just featured Not Ours to Carry. 280,000+ women subjected to conflict-related sexual violence in Tigray. 25 convictions. The only documentary telling this story.

A documentary about the appalling atrocities inflicted on the women of Tigray: Not Ours to Carry Conflict-related sexual violence is rarely prosecuted and rarely seen. Three Tigrayan women, an advo…

12/05/2026

Meet Gabrielle.

Artist. Animator. Storyteller.

During the Tigray war, no cameras were allowed in. The atrocities were hidden by design.

The animation of Gabrielle Tesfaye is the only way we can show what happened. Her style is rooted in Tigrayan art and cultural heritage. It doesn’t illustrate the story from the outside. It speaks from within it.

Her work has been featured in BBC and Vogue. She is based in Mekelle, Tigray, where she returned after the war to contribute to cultural recovery.

She didn’t just animate this film. She gave it its soul.

Follow along as we take this film around the world.

For direct donation to survivors of CRSV please see here: https://www.notourstocarry.com/donate

04/05/2026

Meet Birhan.

Engineer. Witness. Truth-teller.

When war came to Tigray, Birhan walked away from her career and towards the women nobody else was listening to. She sits with survivors. She documents what happened. She refuses to let the world look away.

“What happened to you is a crime, not a punishment. You did nothing wrong.”

She is one of three Tigrayan women at the centre of Not Ours to Carry - a documentary about what it means to bear witness when institutions fail.

Follow along as we take it around the world.

For direct donation to survivors of CRSV please see here: https://www.notourstocarry.com/donate

01/05/2026

Meet Rita.

Engineer. Advocate. Unstoppable.

Rita was born in Adwa, Tigray, and grew up in Manchester. When the war started, she flew to Sudan, where the largest mass of Tigrayan refugees had fled, to document conflict-related sexual violence for use in a court of law. She conducted more than 300 interviews.

She has spoken in the UK Parliament. She has stood before the African Commission on Human Rights. She refuses to stop.

“This world is inflicting this kind of violence on women and children. It’s our responsibility to do something about it. And if we’re going to do something about it, we have to be able to listen to them.”

She is one of three Tigrayan women at the centre of Not Ours to Carry.

Follow along as we take it around the world.

For direct donation to survivors of CRSV please see here: https://www.notourstocarry.com/donate

28/04/2026

Meet Berkti.

Soldier. Advocate. Lioness.

Berkti grew up in Tigray, joined the army, and fought for her people’s survival. When the war ended, she didn’t stop fighting - she changed how.

She knows that for many survivors, the violence didn’t end with the war. Stigma, silence, and shame followed them home. She is on the ground, working with her community to make sure that changes.

“If we, the Tigrayan women fighters are called Lionesses, then the survivors also deserve that respect. They are heroes, just like us. Because their bodies have been used as a battlefield.”

She is one of three Tigrayan women at the centre of Not Ours to Carry.

The film is now on the international festival circuit. Follow to stay up to date.

🔗 www.notourstocarry.com/