BBC news 2010-11-14 加文本

2010-11-14 BBC

BBC News with Gaenor Howells

The Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has addressed thousands of cheering supporters after her release from house arrest in Rangoon by the military government. The excited crowd surged forward when Ms Suu Kyi emerged from the home, where she has been confined for the past seven years. Our correspondent Adam Mynott was at the scene.

It was a moment of delirious excitement for thousands who rushed to Aung San Suu Kyi's home as word rippled through Rangoon that she was to be released. The diminutive 65-year-old democracy campaigner climbed up steps behind the gate of her compound, and the crowd went mad with joy. For 20 minutes, she tried in vain to quieten her delirious followers, and she spoke in measured tones. "I will have more to say tomorrow," she says, "but unity can only come when we work together to achieve our goals."

Many in the crowd held up cameras and mobile phones to record Aung San Suu Kyi speak.

"When I heard the voice, I couldn't stop. I just ran here and then witnessed this amazing woman, like (a) dream come true to meet such an extraordinary woman."

"Now I'm very happy and very, very deeply emotion(emotional)."

"She will be leading our people, strongly."

Lawyers for Aung San Suu Kyi say no restrictions have been placed on her movements or political activities as a condition of her release. She won the last free elections in Burma in 1990 but has never been allowed to govern. But just how free she'll be to lead her political party is not yet clear, as John Simpson reports from Burma.

What we saw here today were scenes of extraordinary, unforgettable pleasure, but no one knows what comes next. Aung San Suu Kyi phrased her new policy with deliberate vagueness when she talked about people working together to achieve their goals. Working with the opposition leaders who felt she was wrong to opt out of last week's elections - certainly. But working with the generals who run this country and have kept her prisoner so long - that's going to be very hard indeed.

The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and called on the Burmese military government to set free all its political prisoners. President Obama said Aung San Suu Kyi was one of his heroes. The British Prime Minister David Cameron said she was an inspiration for all who believe in freedom of speech, democracy and human rights. The head of the Asian regional grouping Asean, Surin Pitsuswan, said he was very, very relieved that Ms Suu Kyi had been released. The European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said Ms Suu Kyi must now be allowed to participate fully in Burma's political process.

World News from the BBC

The BBC has learnt that the Republic of Ireland has been holding preliminary talks about possible financial support from the European Union for its battered economy. The move comes amid mounting concern about the Dublin government's ability to service its huge debts. The BBC business correspondent says it's no longer a matter of if but when Ireland formally seeks help from its eurozone partners, although the Irish government says no such talks are taking place.

The French state-owned rail company SNCF has expressed "profound sorrow and regret" for its role in the transport of Jews to Nazi death camps during the Second World War. The company had been criticised in the US for failing to apologise. Hugh Schofield reports.

French state-owned trains and state-paid rail workers were responsible for carrying some 76,000 Jews from France to Germany and the east in World War II. Only a few of them returned. Ever since, SNCF has insisted that it was not responsible. The rail operator was requisitioned by the German occupier, and workers had no choice but to obey, it said. But now on a trip to the United States, the rail company's chief executive Guillaume Pepy has said that SNCF expressed its "profound sorrow and regret" for the consequences of its actions.

The Iraqi parliament has approved a power-sharing agreement between the main political blocs, paving the way for what's been described as a government of "national partnership". The Prime Minister-designate Nouri al-Maliki is expected to begin talks to form a new government after the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha ends next Friday. Under the power-sharing deal, his main rival Iyad Allawi is to head a new body for strategic policies.

Tens of thousands of people have marched through German cities to protest at an increase in the retirement age and cuts in welfare. Like many European governments, Germany has cut spending to reduce debts.

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