A/HRC/23/46 51. In 2002, the Commission submitted a communication to the Council and Parliament, entitled “Towards Integrated Management of the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union”. The Commission noted that “coherent, effective common management of the external borders of the Member States of the Union will boost security and the citizen’s sense of belonging to a shared area and destiny. It also serves to secure continuity in the action undertaken to combat terrorism, illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings.” 52. The Commission then proposed the development of a common policy on management of the external borders of the EU, with five components: A common corpus of legislation; a common co-ordination and operational co-operation mechanism; common integrated risk analysis; staff trained in the European dimension and inter-operational equipment; and burden-sharing between Member States in the run-up to a European Corps of Border Guards. The Commission recommended creating “an External borders practitioners common unit”. This ultimately led to the adoption of the Schengen Borders Code, the establishment of Frontex and the creation of the External Borders Fund. 1. The Schengen system 53. The Schengen Agreement was signed by five States in 1985, outside the legal framework of the then European Community. It was complemented in 1990 by the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement (Schengen Convention), which entered into force in 1995, abolishing controls at the internal borders. The Convention also provided common rules regarding visas, carriers’ sanctions, police cooperation, liaison officers, right of asylum and checks at external borders. Gradually, more EU Member States joined, and in 1999 the Treaty of Amsterdam incorporated the Schengen acquis into the EU legal order, effectively creating a territory without internal borders. The Schengen Area currently consists of 26 countries (including 4 non-EU Member States). 54. The Schengen Borders Code, established by Regulation (EC) no 562/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council, governs the movement of persons across borders, and sets out common rules for border checks and surveillance, entry requirements and refusal of entry. It provides that the abolition of internal border controls does not affect a Member State’s powers to exercise police powers in the border regions and security checks at ports or airports or to adopt legislation containing an obligation to carry identification documents. Exceptionally, where there is a serious threat to public policy or internal security, a Member State may reintroduce border control at its internal borders. Such an action would only be taken as a measure of last resort, and only to the extent and for the duration necessary to mitigate in a proportionate manner the adverse consequences of the exceptional circumstances. The Schengen Borders Code introduced an obligation for border guards to respect human dignity and the non-discrimination principle when conducting border checks, and it sets out the principle of non-refoulement. It makes reference to the principles recognised by the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and provides that Member States shall provide for training on the rules for border control and on fundamental rights. It also provides that Member States shall introduce penalties for the unauthorized crossing of external borders at places other than border crossing points or at times other than the fixed opening hours, which shall be “effective, proportionate and dissuasive”. The Schengen Practical Handbook for Border Guards provides more detailed rules on carrying out checks at external borders. 55. The Schengen approach to border management is a four tiers access model to Integrated Border Management. The first tier consists of measures in third countries (of origin and transit) such as document experts. The second tier consists of cooperation with neighbouring countries. The third tier deals with control at the border. The fourth tier involves measures within Schengen, such as return. 32