I am writing to express my deepest gratitude
to A/P Gary F. Bell and Prof. Lawrence Boo, my supervisors, for their
assistance, encouragement, and patience.
As a student from a non-English speaking country, it was often not easy
for me to transfer ideas into some eighty thousand words in this language. Besides coming from a
country that has long been operating civil law, I had considerable difficulty
analyzing issues with the common law approach, particularly in reference to the
use of cases for arguments. With this in mind, one may understand how
challenging it was for me to complete the study, at both the levels of
expression and substance. Yet my supervisors won my highest respect for what
they have showed to me over the last five years with their expertise,
dedication, and commitment. They were constantly there to assist and came with
insightful comments and suggestions. I could never be more fortunate to
have them as supervisors and cannot thank them enough for their support.
Besides my supervisors, I
am gratefully indebted to Prof Sornarajah, a member of my thesis committee for
the Doctoral Candidate Qualifying Exam (DCQE), who posed important questions and
offered invaluable comments; even after this event still providing me with
useful advice and inspiration. Other professors at the National University of
Singapore (NUS) Law Faculty, in particular Prof Andrew Simester, A/P Lye Lin
Heng, and Asst/P Arun Kumar Thiruvengadam, also deserve my immense gratitude
for their kind attention, guidance and assistance.
I am also indebted to a
number of good friends who have contributed to the success of the project
either directly or indirectly. My thanks first and foremost go to Ebenezer
Adodo, Liu Huijun, Vincent Benjamin, and Jason Bonin for their company during
my often-lonely stay in Singapore. They made my life easier and warmer with
their friendship, kind help and encouragement. Especially Ebenezer, some draft
chapters of the thesis have benefited from his comments and suggestions for
which I am very thankful. Other good friends of mine Edna Pana, Hai Jing,
Saiful Karim, Abhik Majumdar, Qiu Yang, and Rina Oktoberina have also brought
much excitement, especially in the early period of my study. I will always have
fond memories of the time we spent together.
In addition to the
wonderful friends at NUS, I owe a great debt of gratitude to a number of people. They are Dr Nono A. Makarim and
Ms Karen Mills with their invaluable insights and suggestions as well as Mr
Parsioan Pulungan and Ms Shanti Shamdasani with their useful information and
inputs. Their supports, particularly Ms Mills’ detailed comments on Chapter 7,
have contributed to the improvement of my research. Special thanks also go to
Dr Riyatno of BKPM for providing me with access to much needed data, Dean
Gunardi of Tarumanagara Law School for his unfailing support, and those who
volunteered to be interviewed during my field work.
In support of my PhD
studies, I received a four-year period of research scholarships and a semester
of the President’s Graduate Fellowship from the NUS. I also received some
funding in the form of additional living costs from Tarumanagara University, helping
make my stay in Singapore more enjoyable. I am grateful for their generous
financial support and confidence in me. Furthermore, the assistance afforded by
staff of the Law Faculty’s Library and Graduate Division was important in
ensuring the completion of my study. My special thanks go to the administrative
staff: Normah binti Mohammed, Zanariah
Abidin, and Chuan Chin Yee as well as to the librarians: Lee Su-Lin, Bessie
Neo, and Salmah Bte Ismail for their wonderful support. I am also grateful to
Prof Alan Tan and Prof Simon Chesterman, the former and current Vice-Deans of
the Graduate Program, for overseeing the administrative process which enabled
me to complete the study.
Finally, I am eternally
indebted to my wife, Hasri Wulan, for giving me much needed uplift and
encouragement throughout the course of the program, even in the most difficult times.
Because of her, I always remember with pleasure the time I spent writing this
thesis.
Gatot Soemartono
Singapore, Friday, 28 October 2011