A champion in the fight against Islamic militancy and graft, or an indecisive former general more at home in meeting rooms than on the battlefield? Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, 55, who easily won Indonesia’s presidential election run-off against incumbent Megawati Sukarnoputri according to final results released yesterday, has been described as both.

Diplomats and pundits are divided over the kind of leader Yudhoyono will make, but most agree many Indonesians wanted change after three years of aloof rule by Megawati. Yudhoyono has promised that, pledging to boost a sluggish economy and fight corruption in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy and the world’s most populous Muslim nation.

He will be sworn in on Oct. 20. Some analysts had said the former general’s chances would be boosted by a Sept. 9 blast at Australia’s embassy in Jakarta that killed nine people and threw a spotlight on security.

The man popularly known by his initials SBY certainly has the qualifications for the job. On Saturday, he earned a doctorate from the prestigious Bogor Institute of Agriculture south of Jakarta after defending a thesis on poverty and unemployment. His years of training at US army bases, however, where he earned a master’s degree in management, his fluent English and rapport with diplomats, sparked whispers in the campaign that he was a Western lackey, forcing him to issue public denials.

Yudhoyono’s involvement in Indonesia’s war on terror has also prompted some to label him an enemy of Islam.

<B>Megawati’s husband helps </B>

Aides to Yudhoyono say public sympathy for him rose after Megawati’s husband accused him of childish behaviour in a very public row prior to the announcement of his resignation from her cabinet and the launch of his presidential bid this year. Until then, Yudhoyono was seen as having only an outside chance. His Democrat Party won 10 percent of seats in April parliamentary elections, the fourth-largest among 24 contesting parties and a respectable showing for a new entrant.

Many Indonesians tired of Megawati’s bland style had admired her rival’s refusal to engage in the political horsetrading that has kept power in the hands of a small ruling elite since the downfall of former autocrat Suharto in 1998.

Yudhoyono still faces the same challenges, ranging from separatism and Islamic militancy to an economy struggling to keep pace with a growing labour force, said Sidney Jones of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group. “And everyone says his biggest shortcoming is caution and an unwillingness to take risks,” she said.

Critics regard Yudhoyono’s caution and peacemaking skills as signs of indecisiveness. Among some peers, he had a reputation for preferring meeting rooms to battlefields. One fellow officer once labelled him an “air-conditioner general”, although he did lead Indonesia’s peacekeeping contingent in Bosnia during the mid-1990s.

Supporters say Yudhoyono balances strong and humane qualities. He rose through the ranks under Suharto, but has no blood on his hands and is more known for his large library than prowess in combat. The army runs in Yudhoyono’s blood. The son of a low-ranking soldier, Yudhoyono is married to Kristiani Herrawati, daughter of Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, who was the most high-profile commander of Indonesia’s feared special forces, Kopassus. The couple have two sons, the eldest Agus who is an army lieutenant. The other, Baskoro is studying at an Australian university.

<B>Dan Eaton</B>