These People Are Helping Teach Every Pakistani About How Our Country Is Run

By Momina Mindeel | 24 Sep, 2017

As an active citizen in Pakistan, one should be aware of the laws, rights and basic ins and outs of the legal framework that governs us, right? Unfortunately, because legislation is worded in such complicated words and there’s no effort on a government level to make most laws accessible to people, one doesn’t always get to know how one is even supposed to behave as a “citizen”.

 

This social enterprise has decided to teach every single Pakistani all the laws that you need to know to be able to survive without problems in your own home

Shehri Pakistan is a social enterprise that concerns itself with awareness about fundamental issues that are often unfamiliar to the public, like equal citizenship and other aspects of a democratic society through the use of animation and visually appealing imagery that even the most young children should be able to understand.

Source: Shehri Pakistan/Facebook

One of Shehri Pakistan’s writers, Rasti Farooq says, “our content revolves around adorably illustrated but more importantly, empowering videos for the ‘aam shehri’ who doesn’t know what his fundamental rights as a citizen are, or for example, how a democracy really works. A typical working day at our office looks like a bunch of artists seated around a table knocking around ideas about important issues in our society and then bringing them to life in the form of stories and characters on tablets and sketchbooks. But our motivation is basically just wanting as many Pakistani people as possible to know what their rights are; as a Pakistani, as a Muslim, a non-Muslim, a man, a woman, a child, a student, a laborer so on and so forth.”

 

Use of such easily accessible imagery has made it easier for people to consume and understand what needs to matter to them and social media response has been positive

For example, this one video about how a law is made in Pakistan has more than one million views and it’s probably the most adorable way to help people like me memorize the basic stuff.

Passing of a Law.

ایک عام شہری کی اعلی حکومتی اداروں تک رسائی کیسے ممکن ہے؟ کیا کسی شہری کو یہ حق حاصل ہے کہ وہ اپنے اور مفاد عامہ کیلئے قانون سازی میں کوئی کردار ادا کر سکے؟ اگر ہاں تو اس کیلئے صحیح راستہ کیا ہے؟ جاننے کیلئے دیکھیں یہ ویڈیو۔Does a common citizen have any access to the formation of laws? How can a citizen initiate or be part of the .legislative process that interests the public? To find out, watch this video#Pakistan #Parliament #CivicEducation #RightsShehri Pakistan is pleased to announce that we are collaborating with the National Commission of Human Rights (NCHR), founded under NCHR Act 2012. It is dedicated to elevating the status of human rights in Pakistan through legal and educational means and we are proud to assist them in achieving their goals.

Posted by Shehri Pakistan on Mittwoch, 7. Juni 2017

“The brains behind Shehri Pakistan are a handful of young, socially responsible innovators and artists whose videos are constructed using simple scenarios and characters, for example a farmer and his mistreated cow, but give detailed information about complicated legal processes. This information is easy to consume for the masses because it is presented in Urdu,” tells Shehri Pakistan’s PR manager.

 

Language is kept simple and Urdu is used so as to make the content reachable to as many people as they can

Source: Shehri Pakistan/Facebook

“It’s really exciting work,” says Zahra Aamer, an illustrators at Shehri, “not only because it has allowed me to grow from someone who was considered a novice artist to an illustrator and an animator, but because we know that there is no limit to the way we can use our art to engage with the most pertinent social issues.”

According to Rasti, “the response has been fantastic. We’ve had thousands of likes and hundreds of comments on all our videos. People comment saying how happy they are that someone is actually creatively addressing these important issues that often go ignored. It makes them feel good that someone out there is looking out for their interests. And also, they’re very eager to debate on the merits of a given issue and sometimes they even message us about things that are important to them that they want us to elaborate and make content on.”

Source: Shehri Pakistan/Facebook

Do you also find it hard to get yourself acquainted with  the basic political processes and your fundamental rights as a citizen? Is it hard for you to make your friends, younger siblings, cousins etc. understand what they need to know in order to be a responsible citizen? Worry not buds, Shehri Pakistan is your ultimate solution.

You can find their content over here.

 


Cover Image Via: Shehri Pakistan/Facebook 

Share This

More Recent Stories

Unveiling the New Cola Next TVC with Hamza Ali Abbasi: Celebrating Pakistani Pride

26 Mar, 2024
Featured

Zero Lifestyle Levels Up: A Global Sensational Icon THE FAWAD KHAN Has Arrived for ZERO’S EARBUDS – ZBUDS!

10 Mar, 2024
Featured

JS Bank Invites Iconic Photographer to Document Pakistan’s Rich Cultural Tapestry

7 Mar, 2024
Featured

Upcoming film anthology about Muslim Americans, ‘Ramadan America’, unveils trailer

6 Mar, 2024
Featured

Elevate Your Summer Wardrobe with GulAhmed’s Embroidered 3-Piece Lawn Suits

4 Mar, 2024
Featured

Antioxidants Unveiled: The Vitamin C Edition

4 Mar, 2024