97. The Committee also welcomes the additional information provided in writing by the State party and that by the high-level delegation in the introductory remarks and in the detailed answers to the questions raised, which demonstrate the State party’s willingness to establish an open and fruitful dialogue with the Committee. B. Positive aspects 98. The Committee notes with appreciation the ongoing efforts by the State party aimed at strengthening human rights in Latvia. In particular, the Committee welcomes the following: (a) Legislative measures: (i) The establishment of the Constitutional Court in 1996 and the inclusion in the Constitution of chapter VIII devoted to fundamental human rights; (ii) The establishment of the National Human Rights Office in 1995, which has the mandate, inter alia, to review complaints of human rights violations, as well as to submit to the Constitutional Court cases of legal provisions it believes are at variance with the Constitution of Latvia; (iii) The entry into force of the new Asylum Law in September 2002, aimed at bringing the national asylum system further into alignment with the European Union acquis on asylum and related international standards. The new Asylum Law also introduced two forms of complementary protection (“alternative status”) for asylum-seekers; (iv) The entry into force of the new Immigration Law in May 2003 which, inter alia, provides a maximum length of detention for foreigners arrested in violation of the Law and the right of an arrested foreigner to submit a complaint to a prosecutor, to contact the consulate and to have access to legal aid; (v) The entry into force of the new Criminal Law, which introduced the concept of progressive execution of sanctions and established alternative sanctions, with a view to reducing the problem of overcrowding in prisons; (vi) The draft new Criminal Procedure Law that aims at simplifying the legal proceedings and would, inter alia, decrease the time for bringing a suspect before a judge from 72 to 48 hours; (vii) The draft new Amnesty Law, providing either for the release or the reduction of the term of imprisonment of those groups at risk, such as minors, pregnant women, women with infant children, disabled persons and the elderly; 49