Due to his father’s political activism, Prabowo experienced a childhood of limitations while living outside Indonesia starting from the third grade. However, the love for Indonesia, instilled by his parents and grandfather, motivated him to choose the National Military Academy over attending a prestigious American university, despite his remarkable achievements in high school.
While in Jakarta, Prabowo divided his time between his father’s residence on Jalan Kertanegara, Kebayoran Baru, and his grandfather’s house on Jalan Matraman. His grandfather, R.M. Margono Djojohadikusumo, lived next to K.H. Hasyim Asyari’s residence, the grandfather of Indonesia’s fourth president, Gus Dur.
Prabowo also spent some time in Switzerland due to political conflicts between Prof. Sumitro and President Sukarno regarding the involvement of the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI). Prof. Sumitro opposed the PKI’s role in Sukarno’s government, leading to intelligence services monitoring Prof. Sumitro’s residence overseas.
His education continued at the American School in London, where Prabowo excelled as the captain of the football, debate, and chess teams. He also served as the editor-in-chief of the school magazine. Noteworthy is the fact that Prabowo was the sole Indonesian student at his school during that time.
