ABSTRACT
In the pre-Second World War era, security was viewed through essentially traditional lenses. As far as Papua was concerned, it was a Dutch colony and all the colonial powers, including Australia, were contented with the existing status quo as their broad security interests were safeguarded. As long as the colonial order was in vogue, in geopolitical terms, concern about Papua was almost non-existent. This changed dramatically with the outbreak of the Second World War, particularly with the Japanese invasion and occupation of Indonesia in March 1942. From the onset, the Dutch, who began colonizing Indonesia in the seventeenth century, viewed the Papuan territory as a strategic backwater. Security planners in Canberra viewed Dutch-controlled West New Guinea as a strategic buffer to prevent Indonesian potential aggression eastward. Believing that Papua was of vital importance for Australian security, Canberra's policy was to support the position of the Dutch and deny the territory to Indonesia.
