M. Taufiqurrahman, Jakarta – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono came off well in a House of Representatives discussion of his first two years in power, with even traditional critics praising his work.

His supporters said that during his first two years of administration, Yudhoyono had managed to resolve problems that had beaten previous leaders.

"One of the President's notable achievements was bringing about peace in Aceh, which has been the country's trouble spot for the last 30 years. This was a monumental political feat," said Anas Urbaningrum, a former member of the General Elections Commission who now sits on the Democratic Party central board.

Anas went on to present a long list of the President's achievements, including the government decision to finish repaying the country's debt to the International Monetary Fund and the rise of press freedom. Information and Communications Minister Sofyan Jalil also gave a glowing assessment of the President's performance over the last two years.

He said the administration had managed to solve a problem that had dogged every past administration, controlling the military.

"For the first time in maybe 30 years, 95 percent, if not all, of our troops are in their barracks, which is good for this country and for the soldiers themselves," Sofyan said.

He added that under Yudhoyono, a relative calm had been brought to trouble spots such as Aceh, Ambon and Poso.

Sofyan said that Yudhoyono had also helped democracy take root in the country, as indicated by the election of over 246 local heads in Indonesia's first-ever direct polls in 2004.

According to the Indonesian Survey Institute's most recent poll on the President, the most recent results of which were released Wednesday, 67 percent of respondents thought Yudhoyono's performance was satisfactory. In a poll last month only 38 percent of respondents were satisfied.

Plaudits also came from those on the other side of the political fence to the President.

Former House of Representatives Speaker and current Golkar Party Leader Akbar Tandjung said that while some of Yudhoyono's policies had failed to tackle the country's chronic problems of unemployment and poverty, the government's efforts had at least provided a glimmer of hope.

"We expect the government will be able to translate the hope into reality," Akbar said. He had earlier criticized the government, saying that unemployment had soared under Yudhoyono.

Legislator Sabam Sirait of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle was vague in his assessment of the past two years. "There is no clear-cut benchmark by which we can gauge the government's performance," Sabam said.