Vaudine England, Jakarta – Observing the behaviour of President Abdurrahman Wahid, it is easy to paint a picture of a crazy, erratic, inconsistent and ailing old man, lashing out wildly at his opponents like a wounded animal trapped in a corner.

One could see Mr Wahid as helpless and desperate, unaware of how widely his rule is opposed and embarrassing himself by trying to hang on to office.

Or, as some remaining supporters do, one could describe him as a much-maligned hero, a man still committed to democratic principles who has been forced against his will to act undemocratically in the name of reform.

This view sees him as a man so under attack by the forces of evil once grouped around former president Suharto that he deserves praise for battling so long.

All these analyses have elements of truth. But judgments of leaders must be set in the context of their time; whoever was president after three decades of Suharto and a couple of years of his hand-picked successor, Bacharuddin Habibie, was going to have a rough ride.

To set the record straight, it should be remembered that a majority of civil servants still bear an allegiance to the old Suharto days or to patrons from those times. The armed forces and police maintain strong institutional interests and major pyramids of bribery and patronage which will always militate against democracy.

In continuing pressure on Mr Wahid, Indonesia's police chiefs delivered a fresh blow yesterday, rallying behind their national commander, General Surojo Bimantoro, who is defying a presidential order to step down. A signed statement from the police chiefs suggested that Mr Wahid was trying to politicise the police force and said that they wanted no part of it.

The so-called new politicians from many "new" political parties, who now fill the House of Representatives and the People's Consultative Assembly, are often nothing of the sort. Instead, they are "Ono", meaning Old New Order figures. They date from the Suharto period, which the former president called his New Order.

The general populace is remarkably uneducated about open politics, with the vast majority of young people, who have known only Suharto's warped definitions of national life, unable to reach conclusions of their own. Suharto deliberately emasculated at least a generation of future leaders.

The crux of Indonesia's problems now stem from the fact that what leaders it has grew up during Suharto's time. They learned politics in the shadow of a man more devious, power-hungry and successful than most. As if to soften the viciousness, this kind of politics is called "Javanese", ruled by culture and pride, giving an artistic gloss to what is, in effect, brutal politicking.

A New Order interpretation of Mr Wahid would give him a fighting chance of surviving Parliament's plans to impeach him on August 1. It would highlight his adeptness in turning defeats into partial victories, his ability to manoeuvre his opponents and his use of confrontation to claim compromise.

Public criticism of Mr Wahid is based in part on his backroom dealing, secret manipulations, unsubtle denigration of Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri and more. Some question how could Mr Wahid be a democratic reformer and behave like this.

The answer comes from a more accurate reading of the recent past. Mr Wahid was indeed a figure of reform who was brave and deft-footed against the repressive Suharto. But he was never a saint. He was born to politics, albeit in religious garb, and remains a politician to the core. That means his over-riding goal is to achieve and maintain power, no matter what the cost.

Public misconceptions about him date from before he gained the presidency in October 1999, so that analysts tie themselves in knots to explain how he has changed or deteriorated.

But such convolutions are not necessary, because Mr Wahid is just the same mercurial, arrogant and determined politician he always was. "He has always been like this," says political analyst Marcus Mietzner.

The point for Mr Wahid was never in doubt. He has God on his side and therefore expects trials of the kind currently before him. If and when he is deposed by Parliament, he still will not admit defeat. And in this, at least, he has been entirely consistent for years.