In Southeast Asia, Joe Cochrane argued at the end of last week, Indonesia is an unlikely transitional success story. Yes, indeed. In 16 years since the fall of Suharto, it has become “a role model for peaceful, democratic transfers of power in Southeast Asia, a region where they are becoming increasingly rare”. How did that happen? Cochrane points to two key factors. One is that, “unlike in Thailand, post-Suharto civilian leaders in Indonesia sidelined the armed forces from politics”. The other is a “bold move to regional autonomy” taken soon after the collapse of the authoritarian regime, which “broke Jakarta’s political monopoly and prevented the emergence of a new, dominant national political force”. In a country marked by considerable corruption, discrimination and violence, there’s still much to do. Nevertheless, on both counts there are absolutely critical lessons here for Myanmar. Can they be learned, though, when establishment figures retain tight control over the reform process?