Move to reinstate Vice and Virtue

The Afghan government is considering the re-establishment of the Taleban's Department for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.

The move has been recommended by the Ministry for Religious Affairs.

Under the Taleban, the department was notorious for its sometimes brutal enforcement of Islamic norms.

A government minister said the department would help to prevent corruption. The Afghan parliament is due to debate the issue soon.

Correspondents say that under the Taleban, the department's enforcers struck fear into the population by such actions as beating women who did not observe the strict dress code.