Jacob Nuwa Wea was quoted by Kompas newspaper as saying at least 94 Indonesian maids working in Singapore have died since 1999, including one this year. Most of them fell to their death while working in high-rise apartments.

"All efforts made by the Indonesian government to protect Indonesian workers in Singapore, including an agreement with Singapore's Ministry of Manpower in August 2002, have come to nothing," Nuwa Wea was quoted as saying.

"We have no choice but to stop sending workers to Singapore until the government of that country truly implements all terms that have been agreed."

Manpower ministry spokesman Dwiyanto told AFP there had been no official decision to stop sending workers to Singapore.

Nuwa Wea said the agreement required employers to install metal railings on apartment windows and ban maids from cleaning windows from outside to prevent them from falling.

The working conditions of foreign maids in the affluent city-state, who come mostly from the Philippines, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, have come under scrutiny amid reports of abuse and unsafe work practices.

While some of the falls are believed to be accidents, others are thought to be suicides.

A Singapore Manpower Ministry spokeswoman said this month that first-time employers of foreign maids would soon have to undergo government-run orientation courses to guide them on ways to be better bosses.

The ministry said 22 employers were jailed for abusing their maids between January 2001 and June last year.
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