"This is a great moment, a moment for which an entire generation in your country but also here in Europe have been waiting for," said EP president Martin Schulz.

Aung San Suu Kyi thanked MEPs for their support over the years: "Freedom of thought begins with the right to ask questions and this right our people in Burma have not had for so long that some of our young people do not quite know how to ask questions

"We want to make sure that the right to think freely and to live according to our conscience is preserved. This right is not yet guaranteed 100%. We still have to work very hard before the basic law of the land, which is the constitution, will guarantee us the right to live according to our conscience."

Symbol of freedom and democracy

Mr Schulz called Aung San Suu Kyi a "great symbol of freedom and democracy". "Despite how long it takes, the people who show strength to fight for democracy will prevail in the end," he said.

Aung San Suu Kyi spent 15 years under house arrest before being released in November 2010.

(Europan Parliament)