Military

DATE=10/20/04

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=INDONESIA PRESIDENT UPDATE (L) (CQ)

NUMBER=2-319789

BYLINE=TIM JOHNSTON

DATELINE=JAKARTA

/// RERUNNING TO REVISE FIRST SENTENCE OF INTRO. REMOVING PHRASE, "WORLD'S LARGEST MUSLIM COUNTRY." ///

///// EDS: ADDS A SECOND ACT, FROM YUDHOYONO'S ACCEPTANCE SPEECH /////

HEADLINE: Indonesia Swears in a New President

INTRO: Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a retired general, has been sworn in as the sixth president of Indonesia. As Tim Johnston reports from Jakarta, there are high hopes that the new president will be able to tackle terrorism and corruption and get the country's wobbling economy back on its feet.

TEXT: Indonesia's new president was elected by a population tired of corruption, rising prices and uncertain security.

/// ACT YUDHOYONO IN INDONESIAN EST & FADE ///

When he was sworn in at the parliament building in Jakarta, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised to uphold the constitution and defend the Republic of Indonesia.

Mr. Yudhoyono, like his predecessor Megawati Sukarnoputri, is a moderate secular nationalist. Political analysts expect a change in emphasis and style of government rather than any radical change of direction.

Speaking shortly after his inauguration, Mr. Yudhoyono called for unity in the country.

/// 2nd ACT YUDHOYONO (IN INDONESIAN), EST & FADE ///

He says the problems besetting the country cannot be solved without the participation and support of the Indonesian people.

He has promised to crack down on domestic terrorism, which has pleased his Western allies. Indonesia is the home of a regional Islamic group blamed for a series of bombings in Indonesia and elsewhere in the region.

But given the antipathy by a huge majority of the population to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, he is unlikely to become a supporter of the broader war on terror in the Persian Gulf region.

Analysts think he will bring a more open style of government to Indonesia, a valuable step in eradicating the corruption that penetrates all walks of life in the country.

Although Mr. Yudhoyono was elected with 60-percent of the popular vote, his party controls only 10-percent of the seats in parliament, and observers will be watching closely to see how he works with a potentially hostile legislature. (SIGNED)

NEB/HK/TJ/BK/RAE/FC