On 12 July, President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs met in Riga Castle with the Ombudsman of the Republic of Latvia Juris Jansons to discuss the priorities of the Ombudsman's work so far and in the future, especially in the area of children's rights protection.
During the meeting, the President of Latvia expressed his satisfaction with the Ombudsman's involvement in promoting human rights and the principle of good governance, both by examining specific cases and by educating society in general on human rights issues, including equality and non-discrimination.
"I would like to thank you for your contribution to the protection of children's rights and the rights of persons with disabilities. I look forward to working together with the representatives of your office to improve the legal mechanism for both the courts of general jurisdiction and the Constitutional Court to implement their judgments in practice fully. I expect that the reform of the Law on Orphans' Courts will also be a common area of work. The institution of the President of Latvia is ready to support the Ombudsman's Office in order to improve investigations regarding minors who are victims of sexual violence and to prevent unjustified prolongation of criminal proceedings," said President Rinkēvičs at the meeting. The parties agreed on the need to improve the knowledge of law enforcement officials so that the existing instruments for the protection of victims are applied effectively, and the public trusts them.
The parties also discussed the right to education and the extent to which parents of children can be obliged to purchase school supplies. The President of Latvia thanked Ombudsman J. Jansons for his engagement with international organisations, explaining Latvia's legal policy choices on issues of importance to Latvia and refuting biased and unconstructive criticism of Latvia.
