Burmese monks in Sri Lanka find that their local counterparts wield far more power than they could ever imagine having in their homeland... "For centuries, Burmese monks have been traveling to Sri Lanka, both to study the Buddha?s teachings and to help their Sinhalese brethren restore the monastic order on the island after periods of foreign domination. Burmese monks walk along Galle Face Green, a promenade near Colombo?s city center. (PhotO: NEIL LAWRENCE/THE IRRAWADDY) These days, however, it is the Burmese monks who are more likely to feel under siege. Since the crackdown on the Saffron Revolution in 2007, the Burmese regime has imposed ever more stringent restrictions on monks seeking to further their studies abroad—reinforcing their sense that despite their revered status as religious leaders, they are increasingly regarded as second-class citizens. For those who do make it to Sri Lanka—according to one Burmese embassy official in Colombo, there are some 250 Burmese monks now living in the country—this sense is deepened by the contrast with what they see in the society around them..."