CMW/C/GC/2 38. Article 17, paragraph 3, underlines the non-punitive nature of administrative detention. It provides for migrant workers or members of their families who are detained for violation of provisions relating to migration to be held, insofar as is practicable, separately from convicted persons or pretrial detainees. Given that such detention can last for an extended period, migrant detainees should be kept in special facilities that are specifically designed for that purpose. Moreover, migrant workers and members of their families should not be subjected to any greater restriction or severity than is necessary to ensure safe custody and good order. The Committee is of the view that States parties should look for alternatives to administrative detention and that administrative detention should only be used as a last resort. 39. The Committee considers that administrative detention of migrant workers should, as a rule, take place in public establishments. Privately run migrant detention centres pose particular difficulties in terms of monitoring. States parties cannot absolve themselves of their human rights obligations by contracting out the detention of persons to private commercial enterprises. If States parties delegate such functions to private companies, they must ensure respect for the rights of detained migrant workers, as provided for under article 17 of the Convention. States parties must ensure that detention centre personnel are trained in human rights, cultural sensitivity, and age and gender considerations. 40. Article 17, paragraph 4, underscores the essential aim of the criminal justice system, which is to reform and rehabilitate offenders. Juvenile offenders must be separated from adults and treated appropriately for their age and legal status, and pursuant to international standards, including the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty. 41. Article 17, paragraph 5, guarantees detained and imprisoned migrant workers and members of their families the same rights as nationals with regard to visits by their family members. If the law of a State party grants certain visitation rights, such as direct contact with visiting family members, to nationals who are deprived of their liberty, it must ensure equal rights for detained or imprisoned migrant workers, including those in an irregular situation. States parties shall eliminate de facto discrimination against detained migrant workers by removing practical barriers to their equal enjoyment of visitation rights, such as detention in a remote location, making access difficult for family members. 42. Article 17, paragraph 6, requires States parties to pay attention to the problems that deprivation of liberty may pose for family members, in particular spouses and minor children. In such cases, the Committee is of the view that States parties should seek alternatives to administrative detention, as administrative detention often has dire consequences, both economically and psychologically, for spouses and children. 43. Article 17, paragraph 7, contains a specific non-discrimination clause providing for detained or imprisoned migrant workers and members of their families to enjoy the same rights as nationals of the State of employment or transit who are in the same situation. This provision has the effect of extending additional procedural safeguards, over and above those contained in article 17, to detained migrant workers, such as the right to communicate with the outside, including by telephone, access to health professionals and to education, if also provided to nationals. 44. This provision also raises the issue of family detention. As a general rule, children and families with children should not be detained and States parties should always give priority to alternatives to detention where children and families are concerned. When family detention is unavoidable, detention of children shall be used “only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time”, in accordance with article 37, paragraph (b), of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Moreover, the primary 12