Sidarto Danusubroto

Sidarto Danusubroto was born in Pandeglang on the June 11, 1936, in an official residence of the Ministry of Forestry to a father who was a forestry supervisor. His father, Danusubroto, was a member of the nobility while his mother, R. Ayu Sudjinah, was a direct descendant of Yogyakarta’s Sultan Hamengkubuwono II. His father was a widower with 4 children when he married his mother, who was also a widow. Sidarto was the second eldest in his family.

Sidarto only lived a few years in Pandeglang, before moving to Yogyakarta in 1941. His father retired in Yogyakarta because he had malaria, which was a serious issue in Indonesia at that time. After the 1945 Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, Sidarto’s father worked taking care of less unfortunate individuals living in Yogyakarta, then Indonesia’s capital city.

Sidarto graduated from elementary school in 1948. He then attended the Terban Taman junior high school where he was acquainted with many individuals that would later become prominent, including Sanyoto Sastrowardoyo (who would later be the head of Indonesia’s Investment Coordinating Board), Syaukat Banjarsari (who would later become the President’s military secretary), and Sudwikatmono (who would later become an executive at Indonesia’s largest conglomerate).

Sidarto sold cigarettes to support his family, while his sister sold iced dawet. He would use his bicycle even though the tires were flat. A meal for dinner would consist of a single egg divided between six family members. They would ask Sidarto to collect crickets, moths, mantises, and cocoons to consume because of their nutritional value.

Sidarto’s brothers were not living with their family as they had joined the Indonesian Army at Kulonprogo. They did not serve as combat soldiers, but cleaned the equipment of Indonesian soldiers. Sidarto was accepted by two different high schools. One was a state school, while the other was a religious boarding school. Initially he attended both schools, but because of all the work and how much time it consumed, his parents told him to choose one. He eventually chose to attend the state school. Because he was 6 months behind (as he attended both schools), he was forced to study day and night in order to catch up with the educational demands. At the last quarter he was chosen to be the president of a student-run organization that consisted of two different high schools. The activities he had taken up consumed a lot of his time, and this took a toll on his academic performance; which rescinded his scholarship. However, the organizational activities that he took part in were useful because he had earned organizational experience including the experience of public speaking.

After high school, Sidarto moved to Jakarta and lived with his brother. Because of the economic conditions that faced his family, he chose to attend a university that offered a scholarship. In August 1955, Sidarto earned a scholarship to attend the University of Indonesia. Although the scholarship could not fully fund his life in Jakarta, it helped ease his family struggles. Three months after being accepted to attend the university, he recalled that he saw a newspaper promotion for students to attend Indonesia’s Police Academy, stating that those who were accepted onto the program would immediately earn the rank of police inspector with a salary that was much more than the university scholarship. He immediately applied and was accepted out of 2,000 other candidates, even though there were only 100 available spots (50 for civilians, and 50 for those already in the police program).

Along with the other 99 cadets accepted in the program, Sidarto lived in barracks in South Jakarta. His training included physical training, weapons training, self-defense, etc. On January 1, 1956, Sidarto officially obtained a rank within the cadets of Indonesia’s Police Academy; and earned a rank of Police Inspector. Back then it was different for cadets, as it took longer for them to graduate. On April 12, 1959, Sidarto married Sri Artiwi and had 5 kids from their marriage. At that time, students from the Police Academy were awarded a house, and he was awarded a house in South Jakarta near the Police Academy. Sidarto graduated in June 1962 and was awarded a rank that is equivalent to captain today. His graduation was attended by Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno.