Fifteen Indonesian maids have fallen to their deaths from their employers' high-rise apartments in Singapore this year, the Indonesian Embassy said yesterday.

　　Kartika Prawati, an embassy official in Singapore, said that most of the deaths were still under investigation, but were largely believed to be the result of inadequate training. Some of the deaths apparently occurred while the maids were hanging laundry or washing windows.

　　She could not say how many were suicides.

　　"It's mostly (due to) lack of training," said Kartika. "We have to improve the training they receive before they come to Singapore."

　　Hundreds of thousands of women from across Asia flock to wealthy Singapore to escape poverty through maid work and are often unaccustomed to city life.

　　Prawati said that among the 15 deaths, two were on the same day last month. Yuni Ekaning Thas, 19, and Aftutik Kasmanan, 18, both died on June 25 after falling from their employers' high-rise apartments.

　　In March, Sanginah Sangsuardi, 21, died after falling 16 stories from her employer's kitchen window - apparently while putting clothes out to dry.

　　Critics say the government fails to provide adequate safety training, and the death prompted it to issue maid agencies and employers a guidebook on dos and don'ts for maids, including safety tips on working in a high-rise apartment.

　　This month, Singapore's Ministry of Manpower issued a new alert to employers, reminding them to protect their maids, and notifying them of a new law which requires employers to report a maid's death within 12 hours, the Straits Times newspaper reported yesterday.

　　"We would like to remind employers that they have a moral and legal responsibility to ensure that their maids work safely in their homes ... especially if their household duties involve cleaning windows or hanging out clothes to dry in a high-rise apartment," the paper quoted the ministry as saying in the notice to employers.

　　According to government figures, a significant number of the maid deaths from falls are suicides, fueling concern that many are poorly treated by their employers.

　　Maids often wind up overworked and with no personal freedom.