Indonesia could have done without the strange affair of Antasari Azhar as it struggles to shake off a reputation for skulduggery . The former chairman of the KPK anti-corruption agency is on trial for murder, charged with ordering the drive-by shooting of his rival for the affections of a 22-year-old golf caddy. His defence team may claim a police fit-up – possible retribution for the KPK’s alleged wiretapping of the country’s chief detective.

Indonesia had been developing quite an investment narrative. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who swept back to power in July having dodged the recession that rolled over Asia, had pledged to spur external investment by cracking down on graft. Investors bought it: the Jakarta Composite Index ranks number four on the list of the world’s best-performing big indices this year in dollar terms. But the story is unravelling. This week, while investors welcomed the reappointment of US-educated liberals to run the finance and trade ministries, there was a frostier reception for the new energy and economics chiefs – both allies of Mr Yudhoyono, and relative greenhorns in their respective portfolios.