In a nation that prides itself on its high esteem for the family, a contradiction presents itself in society’s neglect of children and lack of real concern for their welfare. The numbers of street children found in all major cities in the republic of the Philippines are more than 1.5 million with 200,000 exploited of prostitute.
The problem on street children keeps growing because the urban centers have become a magnet for poor families in search of a better life. The present socio-economic conditions fail continuously to guarantee their basic rights. Street children are indicator of economic ills, increasing poverty, the breakup of social and community life, and family disruption. Child traffickers lure many children into prostitutions and pornography, often with the complicity of parents and other adult family members.
The situation at the margins of society finds street children stripped of the rights they should enjoy. Several organizations that have been put up for the street cannot reach out to all of them. For every child who is helped a hundred are left, hungry and vulnerable, to their own devices. There are opportunities for assisting non-government organizations which are involved in caring for street children. Do you have one in your community it is about time you visit other of these center.
