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Tuesday, September 21, 2004 Radio Free Mike Calls It for SBYOK, so everyone else has, too: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will be the next president of Indonesia. He beat Megawati Sukarnoputri, daughter of the nation's founding president, in an election runoff that fell short of being a surprise, given that Megawati was not just feckless but female (in a Muslim country). BBC has good details; Bloomberg gives the western reaction. ("Indonesian Rupiah, Stocks Rise as Yudhoyono Leads.")Don't be too optimistic. The Radio Free Mike assessment still stands. I think it's basically good for Indonesia to have a change, because Megawati was feckless and out of touch; but SBY never outlined a clear vision for his country, and I met a bunch of people who mistrusted the simple idea of an ex-general taking command only six years after the collapse of General Suharto's military regime. (Suharto had the gall to show up at the polls on Monday. That's like General Pinochet waking up from his too-sick-to-stand-trial-for-crimes-against-humanity convalescence, only to participate in a process he had always resisted.) SBY is mild-mannered for a former general, sure enough; but some smart people in Indonesia worry that he'll roll back freedoms, starting with freedom of the press. We'll see. posted by Michael Scott Moore | 6:01 AM
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