Monks, who spearheaded the demonstrations that gripped Myanmar, appear to be paying a heavy price.

The diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were stripped of their highly revered status and forced to wear civilian clothes.

A resident, who identified himself as Ko Hla, wrote on his Internet blog that the monks arrested for staging protests were being detained at a race course.

'They are forced to squat down as prisoners under the sun during the daytime and are forced to change into civilian clothes,' he wrote.

It was not possible to confirm the report within the highly restricted country, which has been rife with rumours of high numbers of deaths and detentions.

The Yangon race course, however, has been used in the past to hold political detainees.

At the monasteries, some monks have been allowed to leave to collect food donations, watched by soldiers lounging under trees.

'What the government is doing is very bad, especially beating up the monks,' said a grocer, who did not wish to be identified further for fear of reprisals.

ASSOCIATED PRESS