Einars Repše During this period, he oversaw the introduction of the Latvian rublis, Latvia's temporary transition currency, and the Lats, independent Latvia's new currency. Under Repše, the Bank of Latvia pursued a tight monetary policy, implementing a de facto currency board for the Lats. As a result, the exchange rate of the lat has been stable since the early 1990s till now. The success of the Lats made Repše very popular in Latvia. In 2001, Repše resigned from the Bank of Latvia to return to politics. He founded the New Era Party, a Populist anti-corruption party. After the 2002 elections, Repše became
MS Jan Heweliusz captain, who died in the accident, also being blamed for allowing the ship to sail in such an unseaworthy state. In 2005, the European Court of Human Rights in Strasburg ruled that the official investigation of the sinking was not impartial and granted 4600 euros in damages each to eleven relatives of the victims. Today, the wreck of the ship is located at the depth of 27 metres and is frequently visited by divers. MS Jan Heweliusz MS "Jan Heweliusz" was a Polish ferry named after astronomer Johannes Hevelius () that served on the route Ystad-Świnoujście. It was built in