Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi urged thousands of supporters on Sunday in her first major speech since being freed from house arrest to tell her what they want, suggesting she was would pursue a political role.

"Please let us know what you are thinking, what is on your mind. I would like to know over the last six years what changes have taken place in the people and what they are thinking," she told the cheering crowd. "Please do not give up hope. There is no reason to lose heart," she said. "Even if you are not political, politics will come to you."

She told supporters that she wanted to "work with all democratic forces", reported AFP.

Earlier, the Nobel peace prize laureate spent the night in her family villa after greeting more than 1,000 supporters from over its iron gates,  struggling to be heard over the roar of cheers.

Her latest house arrest term expired on Saturday and the military government gave no indication she would be freed until police withdrew from outside her home and removed barricades holding back supporters chanting for her release.

Suu Kyi's lawyers said she was "very glad and happy" to be free after years of house arrest. "There was no condition on her release. She 's completely free," Nyan Win told AFP.

Unconditional release

Ahead of her release, observers had feared Myanmar's junta would try to put restrictions on the movements of their number one enemy - who has spent most of the past two decades confined to her Yangon mansion. But a senior government official told AFP on Saturday there were no strings attached to Suu Kyi's freedom."She is completely free - there are no conditions at all," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile, Suu Kyi received a rapturous welcome from thousands of supporters on Saturday when she appeared outside her house after the end of her latest seven-year stretch of detention. "We must work together in unison," she told the crowd, suggesting she plans to keep up her long struggle against the military regime.

The 65-year-old urged her followers to come to her party's headquarters at noon (0530 GMT) on Sunday to listen to what would be her first political address in seven years.

The NLD, Myanmar's strongest democratic force, was dissolved by the junta in September for failing to register for an election it dismissed as unfair and unjust. The party has since been declared an "unlawful association" and will play no official role in the new political system of the former Burma. It was not clear whether Suu Kyi would face any restrictions on her movements, although her lawyer last week said she would not agree to any conditions as part of her release.

Analysts speak

Analysts say Suu Kyi is still seen as a threat by the military because of her huge popularity. Her release could take the shine away from the formation of a new government and her supporters are concerned she could be rearrested if she provokes the military, in power for five decades.

She has yet to reveal what role she intends to play, but analysts expect she will meet diplomats and push for an easing of the sanctions she once backed but now believes are hurting the Burmese people rather than the generals. "There are areas where she can play a considerable role if given the opportunity and the West will try to use her in this sense," said Derek Tonkin, a former British ambassador to Thailand and prominent Myanmar analyst.

World leaders welcomed her release but urged the junta to free all estimated 2,100 political prisoners. US President Barack Obama said her release was "long overdue" and British Prime Minister David Cameron described her detention as "a travesty". As is typical in Myanmar, the reclusive generals made no comment. Her release may give the junta a degree of international legitimacy after the November 7 election, the first in 20 years.

World leaders hail release

World leaders and rights groups hailed the release of Aung San Suu Kyi but warned the junta not to restrict her and called for the release of all political prisoners.

US President Barack Obama said that "while the Burmese regime has gone to extraordinary lengths to isolate and silence Aung San Suu Kyi, she has continued her brave fight for democracy, peace, and change in Burma". "She is a hero of mine and a source of inspiration for all who work to advance basic human rights in Burma and around the world," said Obama in a statement on Saturday, using the country's former name.

In Oslo, the Norwegian Nobel Committee invited Suu Kyi to make the traditional acceptance speech the Nobel Peace laureate was prevented from giving in 1991, the NTB news agency reported.

China, one of Myanmar's closest allies and a mainstay for the junta through trade ties and arms sales had no immediate reaction, although the official Xinhua news agency did report the release of the "noted political figure".

India, which has also been accused of turning a blind eye to the regime's abuses, greeted her release as a welcome step forward in efforts to achieve "a more inclusive approach to political change" in its southeastern neighbour.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) which includes Myanmar but has been accused by the West of not doing enough to push for change in the military-ruled country, welcomed the release.

Neighbouring Thailand, a major trading partner, echoed the sentiment, saying it hoped that Suu Kyi "will have a constructive role to play in Myanmar's nation-building process".

While the reaction to Suu Kyi's release was broadly positive, several leaders and rights groups urged Myanmar to do more. Obama said it was "time for the Burmese regime to release all political prisoners", in a statement echoed by Australia.

An army-backed party swept the poll, derided as a sham to prolong military rule behind a facade of democracy in a country which just over 50 years ago was one of Southeast Asia's most promising and wealthiest.

Experts say the junta would likely need to release more political prisoners before the West lifts sanctions which many experts deride as ineffective, allowing the generals to monopolise the economy for themselves and their allies.