Egypt Noise Pollution Move Raises Ire of Conservative Muslims

There is a raging dispute in Cairo, Egypt over an order issued last September by the Ministry of Religious Endowments. To reduce the noise caused by prayer calls from some 4000 separate mosques, the Minister ordered that a single centralized prayer call be broadcast. Today Egypt Election Daily News reports that despite the ear-splitting noise that emanates from the many mosques, the move is suspected by some as being in fact an attempt to stifle more conservative imams. Despite strong government denials, they see this as an attack on the individuality of various mosques and a prelude to the imposition of a uniform government-approved Friday sermon. Others claim that this will add to Egypt's unemployment problems by throwing many muzzeins out of work. The paper reports that "one conservative imam has argued that "technologising" the call to prayer will start the nation down an ungodly path that will one day terminate with people bowing down before TV sets tuned to pictures of Mecca".