BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya (19 October) -- Public awareness on children's rights continue to rise in the province due to the previous information campaigns conducted by concerned agencies, officials of the provincial social welfare office here bared Wednesday (October 18).

Dionita Osio, social welfare officer II and in-charge of women and children in difficult circumstances of the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PWDO) said that the series of advocacy activities conducted in the past utilizing the tri-media resources and networks in the province have greatly contributed to the reporting of cases of abuse and exploitation among children.

The reports that we receive in the middle of 90s are very few compared to the present. Right now, abuses and other cases committed against children are immediately reported to our office which we consider it as a healthy response, Osio told PIA.

She made the statement as concerned agencies have wrapped up plans for the various activities lined up under the observance of Children's Month this October with the theme: "Bright Child, Yaman ng Pamilya, Yaman ng Bansa."

According to Osio, some of the reports on child abuse received by their office were committed in the middle of 90s while the other cases reported were just committed in a year.

"We can say that our information, education and communication programs have really paid off because of the increased level of awareness among the public on children's rights. In the past, they will wait for years before they report, but today, they will just wait for a month or a couple of weeks before they report these cases," Osio said.

The activities for the Children's Month celebration are; the opening program with story telling by provincial officials for day care children(October 30), Scrap book workshop with 30 high school students(November 6), Junk Art making for Out of School Youths(November 20), Mosaic Clay Art(December 4) and the culmination program on December 15 which will feature the State of the Children Report of governor Luisa Lloren Cuaresma.

PSWDO report showed that the cases of abuse committed against the children here are sexual abuse which registered the highest number of cases followed by physical abuse, battered children, youth offenders and abandoned and neglected children.

Osio however admitted that there are still unreported cases of abuse against children in the province due to threats and fear of reprisal from the suspects.