Semarang, October 8, 2025 – The Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) at Universitas Diponegoro presented Dr. Henrietta McNeill, Research Fellow in Pacific Security, Geopolitics, and Regionalism from the Department of Pacific Affairs (DPA), Australian National University (ANU), in a general lecture titled “Border Security Cooperation to Combat Transnational Crime in the Pacific Islands Region.”

The event held on Tuesday, October 7, 2025, is part of the A Week with Dr. Henrietta McNeill program, which runs from October 7 to 12, 2025, at FISIP UNDIP. This academic visit was initiated by the Governance Academic Expertise Cluster (KBK), under the coordination of Dr. Teguh Yuwono, Dean of FISIP Universitas Diponegoro and Chair of KBK.

In her lecture, Dr. McNeill highlighted the importance of cross-border security cooperation among countries in the Pacific region in addressing transnational crime threats such as human smuggling, narcotics trafficking, and maritime crime. She emphasized that border security is not only a defense issue, but is also closely related to migration, citizenship, and social justice.

“Security cooperation in the Pacific region needs to be viewed holistically, because transnational crime often has its roots in broader social, economic, and migration dynamics,” Dr. McNeill said in her presentation.

The Dean of FISIP UNDIP, Dr. Teguh Yuwono, expressed his appreciation for Dr. McNeill’s presence and considered this activity highly relevant to the direction of research and learning development at FISIP. “This visit provides an opportunity for the academic community to learn directly from international experts and understand the complexity of regional security governance from the perspective of the Global South,” he said.

Dr. Henrietta McNeill is a widely recognized researcher in Pacific security and the security-migration nexus. She earned her doctorate from ANU through her research on the securitization of criminal deportation in Tonga, Samoa, and the Cook Islands, which won the IASOC Best PhD Thesis/Dissertation 2024 award. In addition to her research activities, she is a co-investigator on several Strategic Policy Grant projects for the Australian Department of Defense and co-editor of the books Security Cooperation in the Pacific Islands (2025) and Power and Influence in the Pacific Islands (2024).

Through the A Week with Dr. Henrietta McNeill program, FISIP UNDIP affirms its commitment to strengthening global academic networks, broadening students’ knowledge of Pacific dynamics, and encouraging cross-border research collaboration on security, migration, and regional governance issues.