Myanmar monks march again as UN envoy mulls return visit

The latest march by monks in the central town of Pakokku, 370 miles northwest of Yangon, suggests the crackdown merely managed to stifle, not eradicate, widespread anger at 45 years of military rule and deepening poverty.

The town has been a flashpoint since soldiers fired over the heads of monks in early September, transforming small, localised protests against shock hikes in fuel prices into the biggest anti-junta uprising in two decades

A witness told Reuters about 200 maroon-robed monks chanted prayers as they walked three abreast through the centre of the town.

The Democratic Voice of Burma, a dissident radio station based in Norway, said the monks were sticking to their demands for lower fuel prices, national reconciliation and release of all political prisoners, including Suu Kyi.

8220;We are not afraid of getting arrested or tortured,8221; a monk was quoted as saying.