BEIJING, Jan. 16 (Xinhuanet) - A total of 20 seafarers who were riding on a coal carrier in the Indonesian waters last year were reportedly detained for several months.

According to an annual report recently released by the panel of UN Security Council North Korea sanctions committee, the 'Wise Ernest', which carried 25,500 tons of coal from North Korea, was detained by Indonesian authorities on April 1 last year.

Earlier, Wise Ernest was informed that the ship was headed for its own territory, and the Indonesian authorities confirmed that the ship was double-registered with North Korea and Sierra Leone and confirmed that they were not allowed entry to any port.

In the process, 25 North Korean seafarers were detained for several months together.

Three months later, one of the sailors died of heart failure due to diabetes. At the same time, another sailor was taken to a hospital in Jakarta with one sailor who lost sight due to mental illness.

In addition, three out of the 25 patients were left out of the ship due to acute health problems caused by brain tumors.

Whether they will be repatriated to North Korea has not been confirmed.

The Indonesian government has not responded to the inquiry, and an official at the North Korean embassy in Jakarta said only that the crew were in good health.

A panel of experts on sanctions against North Korea said it was not confirmed that the coal contained in the Wise Ernst was unloaded.