Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – The blasts that rocked the Indonesian capital came a day after the reopening of Paddy's bar which was devastated in the Bali bombings.

Now, Indonesians are wondering how they will pick up the pieces of an economy which had just begun to show signs of recovery from the earlier attack, the Iraq war and the Sars outbreak.

As they struggled to return to normal lives, some hit out at the government. "The government needs to improve the intelligence services," said one bank employee. "In the Suharto era, the government knew even if a needle dropped on the floor."

Analysts said investors had just started to show interest in Indonesia again, when bombs devastated the JW Marriott Hotel. Now nervous investors are likely to delay major decisions and foreign tourists are expected to stay away.

The Bali bombings caused a sharp downturn in the number of visitors to the island which accounts for about half of the US$4.5 billion the country earns annually from tourism.

Yesterday, Jakarta office buildings and hotels imposed car checks at their entrances, causing traffic jams in the slow lanes of the capital's major roads. Many Indonesians, as well as foreign residents, said they would avoid crowded areas such as shopping centres, and those linked to American interests.

However, the Jakarta Composite Index recovered slightly after a drastic plunge following the bombing, and the rupiah was strengthening after the government vowed to continue to prop it up. With a stable exchange rate, the central bank would not likely raise its interest rates, helping to steady the economy, analysts said.

Director David Chang of Paramitra Securities told The Straits Times: "The government's response by supporting the rupiah shows that it has become more experienced in handling the impact of such a disaster on the economy." But that did not mean investors would return to Indonesia anytime soon, with the blast hurting confidence in the country, he said. "Because of the bombings, and the security advisories issued by other governments, people will travel less, including businessmen. When business trips are cancelled, decisions are usually postponed," Mr Chang said.

"Foreigners who work here will be more nervous. Because of the higher risk, you have to pay higher package and pay higher insurance for people to work in Indonesia."

Meanwhile, Indonesians expressed anger not just at the government, but at the terrorists. "Maybe the bombers don't have a God," Ms Ade Agusuaersih, 26, told the Associated Press from her hospital bed yesterday. She is a waitress at the Marriott Hotel's lobby restaurant, who was injured in the blast. "They are like animals," she said, as her husband played with their one-year-old son.

At the Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, Ms Warsinah, in her 60s, bravely attempted to identify her nephew Harna, a 37-year-old Silver Bird taxi driver who was killed at the scene. She cried when she saw the body but was not sure if it was really him. Then when her husband checked the ID card found in the man's clothes, she let out a wail. "My poor boy!" she shouted. "He had three kids ... Just kill them [the bombers]! Kill them!"