Kabul gets 400 new loudspeakers to encourage prayers

KABUL: Hundreds of loudspeakers have been installed in the Afghan capital to encourage worshippers to attend prayers, the Taliban´s religious enforcers said on Wednesday.

The Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice also said that hundreds of empty shops and other disused buildings had been recently converted into mosques to give everyone the opportunity to pray communally. “During the previous government, some of the loudspeakers were removed and people were not able to listen to the Azan (call to prayer),” the ministry tweeted. It said 400 loudspeakers had been installed in different parts of Kabul “so the people could listen to the Azan at the same time”.

Since returning to power in August last year, the Taliban have gradually introduced strict rules and regulations they say are in accordance with Islamic sharia law. Women have largely been squeezed out of public life, with most women government workers having lost their jobs -- or paid a pittance to stay at home. They must cover up with a burqa or hijab when out of the home, are barred from travelling without a male relative and are banned from visiting parks, gyms or public baths.