The Winnipeg Police Service and the Canadian Centre for Child Protection want people to speak up if they think a child is being abused or exploited.

The two organizations launched an awareness campaign today with a video called “You Have a Duty to Report” in an effort to encourage people to contact the police if they see something suspicious.

October is Child Abuse Protection Month.

“To date we’ve received over 250,000 reports from Canadians about child sexual abuse,” said Christy Dzikowicz, Director of the Child Safety and Family Advocacy Division, Canadian Centre for Child Protection. “This tells us we have a very huge problem and it tells us we know kids have a really hard time telling us when they are being harmed.”

“We need to remind folks that we can’t mind our own business when it comes to the safety of children,” she continued. “We need to step up. We need to say something. Instead of thinking ‘what if I’m wrong?’ we need to start thinking ‘what if I’m right?’”

Inspector Kelly Dennison with the Specialized Investigations Unit says the video will go up on the Winnipeg Police Service Facebook, Twitter and YouTube pages.

Dennison adds in the past year Winnipeg police received 530 reports of child abuse but he believes those are only the cases being reported.

Dzikowicz says people who care about the welfare and safety of children greatly outnumber those who want to harm them, but that’s only a positive when people who want to protect children report their concerns.

“We hope this is a good reminder for everyone to step up and reach out, whether it’s to police or cybertip.ca,” she said. “If you see something you’re worried about, say something instead of going home and stewing about the fact you’re worried.”

If you know of a child who is being harmed you can contact the Winnipeg Police Child Abuse Unit at 204-986-6222 or Crime Stoppers at 204-786-TIPS (8477). You can also report online at cybertip.ca.

You can watch the video below.