By Chris Xia
BBC News
Burma has hundreds of thousands of monks, who are highly revered
Monks played a crucial role in the nationwide pro-democracy protests, and since then the military authorities have moved to break up this source of opposition.
The procession in Pakokku was ostensibly a religious affair. The monks gathered at a shrine, and walked chanting through the town. But it is hard not to see this as a challenge.
Pakokku was the site of a violent incident in early September which triggered the nationwide demonstrations, when the security forces badly beat monks who joined protests about the growing cost of living.
The procession also took place on the same day a pro-government rally was staged by the authorities, although it is not clear whether the monks' rally was a direct response.
Loss of welfare
The crackdown on the protests sparked international action
Since the military crushed last month's protests, monks have not been seen on the streets in any numbers.
Many monasteries have been closed or put under armed guard, monks have been sent home, and it is thought hundreds of monks and nuns remain in detention.
The Burmese generals appear to have adopted a policy of dispersing this potent source of opposition - the only institution which had the strength to stand up to the military.
In particular, they have moved to shut a number of Buddhist centres of learning. Some monasteries linked to the protests are virtually empty, with only a few monks and the abbot remaining inside.
Monks who have escaped across the border to Thailand have described being locked up and prevented from going out into the streets to beg for alms, as is their custom.
One said he and fellow monks were forced to survive only on the food given as alms by the military, an added humiliation given that monks had declared they would refuse to accept gifts from soldiers.
Burmese Buddhist leaders abroad have spoken of their fear that the very survival of Burmese Buddhism is now under threat.
A number of senior monks said they were setting up a new Supreme Body for Burmese monks or Sangha.
Burmese abroad have also said they are worried about the loss of the social welfare that the monasteries provided - wondering who will now help the most vulnerable members of Burmese society.
Les moines lors de la manifestation

Des moines bouddhistes birmans sont retournés dans les rues de Rangoon faire une autre manifestation contre la junte militaire, la première depuis que les forces armées ont sévèrement réprimé celles d'il y a un mois.

Après cette manifestation, on espère que l'envoyé spécial des Nations Unies, l'Égyptien Ibrahim Gambari, vienne visiter une seconde fois ce pays pour convaincre la junte de parler avec la leader de l'opposition, le prix Nobel de la paix 1991 Aung San Suu Kyi.

Des témoins disent qu'au moins 200 moines chantaient des prières en marchant en colonnes de trois par le centre-ville. La ''Voix démocratique de Birmanie'', une station radio basée en Norvège, dit que les moines réitèrent leurs demandes d'une diminution du prix de l'essence, d'une réconciliation nationale et de la libération de tous les prisonniers politiques, y compris plusieurs de leurs confrères moines.