YANGON  - Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday spent her 63rd birthday alone and locked under house arrest, while seven of her supporters were detained for shouting for her freedom. The Nobel Peace Prize winner has spent more than 12 years confined to her rambling lakeside home, where she is allowed no contact with the outside world. The military regime has long ignored international demands for her freedom, which were reiterated by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who called her detention a "deplorable situation". Seven of Aung San Suu Kyi's supporters were arrested outside the headquarters of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party in Yangon, where more than 100 people had gathered to give food to monks and nuns as a religious offering for her birthday. After releasing 63 sparrows to call for her freedom, a small group on the pavement shouted: "Release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi now" Just a few minutes after they began shouting, a pro-junta militia confronted them and seven people were arrested, according to party members who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of their safety. Britain and France sent an open letter to Aung San Suu Kyi to mark her birthday, calling for her immediate release and urging political reform in the country once known as Burma. "Your release from house arrest and your freedom to participate in Burma's political future remain essential," Prime Minister Gordon Brown and President Nicolas Sarkozy said, also hailing her strength and courage. The All Burma Monks' Alliance, which claims to have organised the protests, said in a statement that junta leader Senior General Than Shwe should face trial for crimes against humanity for blocking relief supplies. "The actions of the junta leave millions of people to die from starvation and infectious diseases in the delta region," the group said in a statement received in Bangkok.