SBY, sixth president of Indonesia

SBY, sixth president of Indonesia

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Not so long ago, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was unlikely
presidential material. He was not a politician, and only recently
formed a tiny new political party. It seemed that in this reform
era, many would have had enough of military figures like him, a
retired Army general.

Yet he has proven himself capable of rising to the occasion --
regardless of whether it has been a case of popularity over
substance.

He is scheduled to take his oath of office on Wednesday as
Indonesia's sixth president, to replace Megawati Soekarnoputri
following his landslide victory in the nation's first-ever direct
presidential election. His running mate, Jusuf Kalla, will also
take over from vice president Hamzah Haz.

Susilo's image as the cool conqueror in this presidential race
has played out to the end of Megawati's term, as reports have
continued of the incumbent declining to congratulate him or even
attend his inauguration.

The president-elect will be held to his word -- he has
promised to listen to the people who have given him a solid
mandate.

"This victory ... is of all Indonesian people who want to see
real changes they entrusted me to make. I will keep my
promise ... and listen to what the people want me to do in the
next five years," he said after he and his wife, Kristiani
Herawati, visited his mother, Habibah, in Blitar, East Java,
recently.

The former chief security minister conceded that he was far
from perfect and has made many mistakes in his military and
government career, but said: "The important thing is the
readiness to make corrections, to listen to others and learn from
others' experience to avoid similar mistakes."

From the nation's haphazard experiences with presidents, he
knew that this remark would hit the right button.

Susilo as president will benefit from his broad education and
his experience during his military and public service. He
graduated in 1973 from the Military Academy in Magelang, and
gained a masters degree in management from Webster University in
the United States and recently completed his doctorate with the
Bogor Institute of Agriculture (very conveniently timed ahead of
his inauguration).

Under former strongman Soeharto, Susilo, or SBY as he is
popularly called, was among the Army's rising stars along with
former Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Wiranto and former
special forces chief, Prabowo Subianto.

From 1996 to 2000, Susilo rose from colonel to lieutenant
general, his last position being chief of TNI territorial
affairs.

He was one of the architects of reform in the military
following Soeharto's demise in May, 1998. Susilo will also be
watched closely to see whether he stays true to his pledge to
continue military reform, given the contentious clauses in the
military bill.

Among his first crucial tests will be how he uses his
authority with his "home base", the TNI. After its chief recently
resigned somewhat inexplicably, Megawati used the last of her
powers to install Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu to
replace Gen. Endriartono Sutarto -- while the TNI headquarters
announced that the latter was still in power.

Susilo's campaigners have attempted to avert fears of a
military comeback. They draw on a book SBY, Sang Demokrat (SBY
the democrat) written long before the campaign, depicting him as
a democratic personality.

Born in Pacitan, East Java, on Sept. 9, 1949, to father
Soekotjo and mother Habibah, he is described as having shown
potential since elementary school. He was raised by his uncle
because his parents moved frequently due to his father's military
assignments.

Following his failure to secure the vice presidency in 1999,
Susilo was recruited by former president Abdurrahman Wahid to
serve as minister of energy and mineral resources and
coordinating minister for political and security affairs, until
2001. He retained his position in Megawati's Cabinet.

The scholar, Achmad Yani, said in his book Resolusi Konflik
(conflict resolution) that SBY has proven his managerial
capability in handling several conflicts.

Others might beg to differ, citing the collapse of peace talks
with Acehnese rebels under his tenure as chief security minister.
But then again it was the people of Nanggroe Aceh Darrussalam who
also gave him the majority of votes in last month's poll.

Critics would also question whether, as a high-ranking officer
there was anything that he might have done to stop terrible
events in recent history, such as the shooting of demonstrating
students and the May 1998 riots in several towns, in which over
1,000 people were burned to death and many Chinese-Indonesian
women raped.

During the campaign period, particularly since the race for
the runoff, all sorts of rumors about Susilo and his family began
to emerge and spread.

He was alleged to have made secret deals with the United
States to prepare East Timor's separation from Indonesia in 1999;
there were fears that given his apparent close ties with the
U.S., as indicated by his firm statements on terrorism, he might
resume diplomatic ties with Israel.

"We should bear in mind that the higher a plant grows, the
stronger the wind blows, yet the stronger the plant stands," he
said, referring to a local proverb.

He said that he was ready to be jailed if proven guilty of
being involved in the above tragedies and would step down if it
was proven that he had turned Indonesia into a U.S. lackey in the
region, or if he resumed diplomatic ties with Israel -- perceived
here as the oppressor of Palestinians.

He responded to the rumors nevertheless -- including one that
he had first married a Filipino, stressing that Kristiani
Herawati, daughter of former Military Academy governor Lt. Gen.
Sarwo Edhie, was the only woman he had ever married, and with
whom they have two sons -- Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, an Army
officer, and Edi Baskoro Yudhoyono, who is still a university
student in Australia.

In his first 100 days, Susilo, who has received
congratulations from many countries, claims that his top
priorities will be fighting corruption and restoring security and
public order, apart from going around the country to hear first
hand what people want.

"In the spirit of togetherness, I'm optimistic that changes
will emerge gradually, but certainly," he said.