On 3 January, President Edgars Rinkēvičs met with the President of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia Aigars Strupišs in the Riga Castle. During the meeting, the parties discussed strengthening the independence of the judiciary, penal policy in cases related to national security and work on informing the public about court rulings.
During the meeting, E. Rinkēvičs pointed out that this year, too, the penal policy, especially in cases involving national security issues, will be the focus of the institution of the President of Latvia. These cases, as well as corruption, hate crime and domestic violence cases, are an aspect of internal security. It is important to ensure that sentences imposed achieve all the penal objectives listed in the Criminal Code, including protecting public safety and deterring the commission of crimes. Therefore, since the summer of 2023, there has been a concerted effort to ensure that the Criminal Code and its application are in line with the current threat and avoid harming the national and public interest.
The parties discussed the measures to be taken to strengthen the independence of the judiciary while ensuring that the judiciary responds appropriately and addresses shortcomings on time and that the independence of the judiciary is not used as a pretext to reject constructive criticism.
