Freed Burma democracy leader calls for dialogue with military

Ms Suu Kyi said she wanted to "remove the sources of disagreement" with the generals and sit down with them across the table, adding: "There are so many things that we have to talk about."

The 65-year-old said she considered herself a "worker for democracy", a description she said was how she saw her future role.

In a interview with the BBC, Ms Suu Kyi said there had been no conditions placed on her release yesterday from house arrest but she recognised the possibility she could again be arrested.

The veteran human rights campaigner, who has been detained for 15 of the last 21 years, appeared reluctant to criticise the generals who rule the country, but said there may come a time in the future when she had to.

She said she had been "better off" under house arrest than the thousands of pro-democracy campaigners who had been imprisoned by the isolated regime.

Ms Suu Kyi said: "I just think of myself as one of the workers for democracy, well better known perhaps than the others here in Burma, but one of those working for democracy, that is my role, it has always been my role and I think it will continue to be my role."

Asked what she meant by calling for reconciliation with the regime she said: "I think we have to sort out our differences across the table, talking to each other, agreeing to disagree or finding out why we disagree and trying to remove the sources of our disagreement if we possibly can.

She said there were "many many questions" about the fairness of the recent elections, which her National League for Democracy (NLD) boycotted. The NLD was looking into allegations of vote-rigging and would publish a report.

But invited to criticise the generals, she stressed: "I don't criticise people just for the sake of criticising them, if there are things to criticise I do criticise. A lot of things I think need to be said about the generals I have already said.

"There may come a time, I hope there won't be many of those times, when I will have to repeat these criticisms because it is unavoidable."

Put to her she had every right to attack them because of the "spurious" reasons why she was held under house arrest, she said: "I don't think so because I was much better off under house arrest than those of our people who were in prison and I really don't think I have any grounds for complaint.

"I fought against this house arrest because I believe in the rule of law and I don't think they had under the rule of law to place me under detention of any kind... but on a practical level I do recognise that my situation was so much better than those who are in prison."

She said there were no conditions put on her release, adding: "I am not fearful, not in the sense that I think to myself 'I won't do this or I won't do that because they could put me under arrest again'. But I know that there is always the possibility that I might be re-arrested."

Ms Suu Kyi spoke of her children, who she has been unable to see for many years.

"Their images are very clear cut and vivid in my mind and in my heart.

"So although on one hand I could say I miss them terribly, on the other I can also say I don't miss them at all because they are always with me."

And in a message to her global supporters, she said: "I really would like to thank all those people all over the world, people whom I have never met who were so kind and so supportive."

Family in britain tell of delight

Aung San Suu Kyi's relatives in Britain told of their joy in anticipation of her first phone call in more than 20 years.

A day after she was released from house arrest, her brother-in-law Adrian Phillips, 68, said Ms Suu Kyi's priority would now be to make contact with her two sons.

Mr Phillips said family members were eagerly awaiting to hear from her.