NGO calls on LGUs to activate barangay council for children’s protection

DAVAO CITY, Dec. 2 (PIA) – A non-government organization seeking to address children’s concerns will have to intensify and widen the rounds of advocating among the barangay government units in the region to activate their Barangay Council for the Protection of Children.

The Child Alert Mindanao, Inc. intends to beef up its advocacy for barangay councils to be reminded of their mandate to establish their respective BCPC and put effect programs ensuring for the protection and promotion of children’s rights.

From the workshop results conducted by Child Alert in its 12 project areas, only one barangay emerged to have functional BCPC with activities being felt by children in the community.

The workshop involving children and youth leaders from five barangays in Davao City and 7 barangays in Davao del Norte, aimed at gathering children’s perception on their situation in relation to the fulfillment of their rights.

Child Alert executive director Bernie Mondragon said BCPC’s presence being hardly felt in the communities come out as one of the relevant observations during the workshop which was conducted days before the celebration of the 25th year of implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“We really need to strengthen our advocacy for the enforcement of BCPC and push for the dissemination of the workshop results,” stated Mondragon in an interview.

He said the workshop results also showed that there is “lack of programmatic response to the needs and issues affecting children and responses are more on individual initiatives.”

“It also came out from the views of the children that existing programs in their barangays do not address the needs of the adolescent children aging 13 to 18 years old,” Mondragon bared, stating that “existing services are focused on infants and young children such as feeding program and immunization.”

He said the children also listed drug abuse, child abuse, substance abuse, child labor, parental neglect, teen pregnancy, gambling and sexual abuse that still remain as major concerns confronting the children up to this time.

According to the workshop results, these concerns have been causing the children to experience dropping out of school, health problems including mental problems, anti-social behavior such as taking on vices and involving in robbery, trauma until adulthood, parent neglect and working instead of attending school.

The children and youth leaders have called on the government, particularly all barangay councils to implement program intended to uphold and protect the children’s rights.

The workshop results were presented in a children’s forum recently spearheaded by Child Alert in Davao City, which tackled the status of most Filipino children after 25 years since UNCRC was implemented in the country.

Children and youth leaders, parent leaders and BCPC representatives from Child Alert’s project areas in Davao del Norte and Davao City attended the forum. (PIA-11/Carina L. Cayon)