Stranded Chinese Return China

Stranded Chinese Return Home

Chinese residents of the Solomon Islands, who had been stranded in Papua New Guinea because of the war in the Solomons, were flown to Guangzhou yesterday.

Some of the 116 rescued returned home by train or bus after landing.

Most of the people evacuated were women, children and older people. The oldest was 64 and the youngest just 15 days old.

All of th rescued appeared in good physical condition and high spirits, according to a report by China Central Television (CCTV).

The rescue plane, a Boeing 777, took off from Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport at midnight and arrived in Papua New Guinea at 8 am local time. The plane landed at Baiyun Airport at 2 pm.

The Chinese had earlier left the Solomon Islands for Papua New Guinea by a Chinese cargo ship.

The mission was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Civil Aviation Administration of China and China Southern Airlines .

Since pilots from the airline had never flown there before, the company's deputy president Li Fenghua navigated the passenger plane himself, according to the CCTV report. On June 5, domestic conflict broke out in the Solomon Islands. Local overseas Chinese appealed to return to China.

The conflict escalated in the following days. But with no direct diplomatic relations with the island country, China asked nearby Australia and Papua New Guinea for help. At the same time, a nearby Chinese cargo ship, the Yangjianghe, was ordered to aid in the effort.

The ship carried the people to nearby Papua New Guinea.

About 300 Chinese live in the Solomon Islands. Some immigrated to the island from Hong Kong in the 1950s, and some are Chinese business people who recently moved there.