Our “state of exception” combines disturbing practices, cost blowouts and chaotic administration, writes Peter Mares.

This report paints a stark picture of a traumatised refugee population which has been hit hard by Australia’s recent healthcare and counselling service cuts, as well as continued threats to their safety.

The Opposition should swallow Scott Morrison’s bitter pill. But it also needs a longer-term plan, writes Peter Mares.

Australia has used a calculated system of neglect and cruelty to increase the hardship suffered by refugees and asylum seekers, but remains responsible for their fate and well-being. It cannot shirk its responsibility, shifting them from one detention centre to several others, in a cynical attempt to conceal the illegality of its practices.

The Howard Government’s resolution of a crisis on Nauru in 2005 points the way forward for dealing with the people currently held on Manus Island, writes Michael Gordon.