Nine-year-old Max Ben stands as a resilient testament among six Papua New Guineans who survived a harrowing sea voyage mishap, enduring a month adrift in the treacherous waters of Kiribati before being rescued by a Chinese fishing vessel. Now safely returned to Port Moresby, Max and his fellow survivors, including Nason Koesana (48), Stanis Logan (41), Bensley Kaskas (35), Raynard Raiasok (25), and Liddy Birigin Kenehata (25), are receiving essential medical checks, care, trauma counseling, and spiritual support to aid their recovery from the ordeal. Their journey began innocently enough on January 27th, departing from Anir Island in New Ireland, with the tragic turn of events leaving two individuals unaccounted for, their fate now under the scrutiny of the NCD Homicide team. Despite the grim circumstances, Foreign Affairs Minister said their safe return was made possible through the collaborative efforts of PNG and international agencies, epitomizing the strength of global cooperation in times of crisis. According to Minister Tkatchenko, the survivors, all from the Autonomous Region of Bougainville were part of a group of eight people traveling in a 23-foot banana boat from Anir Island in New Ireland to Buka in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, after an initial stop at Lihir Island to drop off a passenger, when their boat ran out of fuel. When they failed to reach their destination, the concerned boat owner, Bartholomew Sareka of Lontis village in the Haku Constituency of Buka, promptly reported the incident to the Bougainville Disaster Office and Emergency Directorate and initiated search efforts in collaboration with the PNG Maritime Rescue Coordinating Centre. It was revealed that two persons on board were unable to survive the tough ordeal at sea right through to the end. Despite the challenges posed by bad weather, relentless search efforts led to the eventual discovery and rescue of the survivors by the Lometo, a Mashall Island flag fishing vessel operated by a Chinese company, after 31 days at sea in the Solomon and Kiribati waters on Monday 26th February. On board Lometo, the six PNG survivors, all from ARoB, were provided with necessary food and accommodation. A formal diplomatic note was conveyed by the Chinese Embassy in PNG to Foreign Affairs Minister Tkatchenko the next day, who thanked the Chinese Ambassador His Excellency Zheng Fanhua, his staff, and the crew for efficiently communicating, ensuring and placing high consideration on the safety, well-being, and rescue assistance by the Chinese shipping vessel crew, of PNG citizen's Thus, began PNG’s Foreign Affairs department’s work to contact relevant agencies and coordinate arrangements for the return of the six survivors to PNG, resulting in the successful repatriation out of Tarawa, Kiribati into Port Moresby on Wednesday 20th March, thanks to the collaboration of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Bougainville Disaster & Emergency Directorate, National Disaster Centre (NDC), and the National Coordination Office of Bougainville Affairs (NCOBA. Minister Tkatchenko said the survivors arrived in the country with the close assistance of the Foreign Affairs Consular Branch team at the Port Moresby International Jackson Airport. He further expressed utmost appreciation to the Chinese Government through its Embassy in Port Moresby, the Government of Kiribati, the Fiji High Commission in Port Moresby, the National Disaster Centre, the National Coordination Office of Bougainville Affairs, Bougainville Disaster and Emergency Directorate, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and its overseas mission in Suva, Fiji for the joint efforts to ensure the safe arrival of the survivors in the country. Minister Tkatchenko while also offering his thanks to the Chinese Lometo crew, highlighting the close PNG-China relations currently, had ensured efficient communications. "We are very grateful in this particular case, for our relations with the Government of the Peoples Republic of China, and the Chinese Embassy - for their efforts through their monitoring systems, and the prompt communications of the rescue.” “I was able to personally convey the news of this rescue to the immediate families on the day they were found, as a result of their stringent protocols.” “Additionally, we salute and thank the crew of the fishing vessel, the Lometo for their part in the month-long search and rescue, and their care and rehabilitation efforts for the survivors.”