Yet again, there is cause for Australians to be profoundly disturbed about the federal government's management of asylum seekers in offshore detention facilities. Twenty-four medical staff and Save the Children employees say the Abbott government has known since November 2013 of sexual and physical assaults and harassment of children and women within the Nauru detention facility. They say the assaults were raised repeatedly, in writing and in regular meetings, with officers of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Worse, though, is that some remain in danger.

The lack of accountability by successive governments, the obfuscation and downright lies that have been perpetrated, and the profound injustices wreaked on detainees over years more than justifies an inquiry. It is time for a royal commission to examine Australia's offshore detention regime.

Transparency should be uppermost when vulnerable people, who have not committed any crime and are seeking this nation's protection, are being detained. A parade of ministers has presided over this odious regime, yet none has taken a modicum of responsibility for the gross injustices and abuses of human rights, a regime that has lowered Australia's reputation internationally and brought dishonour on us all.

Much filtering of information has been done by the government, ostensibly to protect borders, and amid it all have been shameful attempts to discredit whistleblowers. The little information that emerges about events inside the Nauru and Manus Island facilities – about criminal assaults, intimidation, protests and occasional riots – mostly comes from non-government organisations, whose employees are disparaged by the government for daring to say what they saw, or via refugee advocates, who are similarly demonised.

The patronising, secretive attitude has become an art form under the Abbott government. On its watch, a man was killed in the Manus Island facility during a riot in which outsiders and some staff attacked asylum seekers.