A resounding victory for Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the incumbent president of Indonesia, seems certain to be confirmed when official results of this week’s election are announced. Normally reliable polls suggest he won more than 60 per cent of the vote.

The landslide should give the former general-turned-democrat, known by his initials SBY, a real opportunity to transform the world’s most populous Muslim majority nation from being an also-ran in Asia to becoming an economic leader with a much louder voice in the region.