In Pakistan, rickshaws are a major form of transportation in both densely populated urban and rural areas. Often a colorful blur as their drivers weave through heavy traffic on main roads and narrow alleys, rickshaws, like trucks and buses, have served as popular canvases for artistic expression and advertising for decades. Recognized as a cultural phenomenon in its own right, rickshaw art renders each vehicle unique in its display of political, religious, social and personal artwork, poetry and prose directed at a broad audience.
In recent times, rickshaws have been appropriated by right-wing political and religious parties, especially the Pakistan Defence Council (a coalition of religious organizations) to promote an anti-Indian and anti-American agenda. But Pakistan Youth Alliance (PYA), a youth-based non-profit organization established in 2007, is challenging this jihadi discourse through its Aman Sawari, or Peace Rickshaws, project.
"In lieu of the rickshaw art widely used by right-wing organizations to spread their ideology on streets, it is necessary to counter their message on the same platform and turn this romanticized art form into a symbol of peace and tolerance," explains Syed Ali Abbas Zaidi, co-founder of Pakistan Youth Alliance.
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