amnesty
- amnesty
-
/am"neuh stee/, n., pl. amnesties, v., amnestied, amnestying.
n.
1. a general pardon for offenses, esp. political offenses, against a government, often granted before any trial or conviction.
2. Law. an act of forgiveness for past offenses, esp. to a class of persons as a whole.
3. a forgetting or overlooking of any past offense.
v.t.
4. to grant amnesty to; pardon.
[
1570-80; ( < MF amnestie) < Gk amnestía oblivion, equiv. to ámnest(os) forgetting (a- A-6 + mnes- remember + -tos verbal adj. suffix) + -ia -Y3]
* * *
In criminal law,
a sovereign act of oblivion or forgetfulness (
from Greek amnestia, "
forgetfulness")
granted by a government,
especially to a group of persons who are guilty of (
usually political)
crimes in the past.
It is often conditional upon the group'
s return to obedience and duty within a prescribed period.
See also pardon.
* * *
in criminal law,
sovereign act of oblivion or forgetfulness (
from Greek amnēsia)
for past acts,
granted by a government to persons who have been guilty of crimes.
It is often conditional upon their return to obedience and duty within a prescribed period.
Amnesty is granted usually for political crimes against the state,
such as treason,
sedition,
or rebellion.
It is addressed generally to classes or communities and takes the form of a legislative act or other constitutional or statutory act of the supreme power of the state.
Thus in 1865 President Andrew Johnson issued a proclamation granting full pardon to all former Confederates (
except certain leaders)
who would take an unqualified oath of allegiance to the United States.
Technically,
however,
an amnesty differs from a general pardon in that the latter simply relieves from punishment whereas the former declares innocence or abolishes the crime.
* * *
Universalium.
2010.
Synonyms:
Look at other dictionaries:
Amnesty — International Zweck: Menschenrechtsorganisation Vorsitz: Peter Pack (Vorsitzender des internationalen Exekutivkomitees) Gründungsdatum: 28. Mai 1961 Mitgliederzahl … Deutsch Wikipedia
Amnesty — International Logo de Amnesty International Contexte général Champs d action Défense des droits de l homme Zone d influence … Wikipédia en Français
Amnesty — (from the Greek amnestia , oblivion) is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to the positions of innocent persons. It includes more than pardon, in as much as it… … Wikipedia
amnesty — am·nes·ty / am nəs tē/ n pl ties: an act of clemency by an authority (as a government) by which pardon is granted esp. to a group of individuals illegal alien farm workers seeking amnesty National Law Journal Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law.… … Law dictionary
amnesty — (n.) pardon of past offenses, 1570s, from Fr. amnestie intentional overlooking, from L. amnestia, from Gk. amnestia forgetfulness (of wrong); an amnesty, from a , privative prefix, not, + mnestis remembrance, related to mnaomai I remember (see… … Etymology dictionary
Amnesty — Am nes*ty, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Amnestied}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Amnestying}.] To grant amnesty to. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
amnesty — ► NOUN (pl. amnesties) 1) an official pardon for people convicted of political offences. 2) a period where no action is taken against people admitting to particular offences. ► VERB (amnesties, amnestied) ▪ grant an amnesty to. ORIGIN … English terms dictionary
amnesty — [am′nəs tē] n. pl. amnesties [Fr amnestie < L amnestia < Gr amnēstia, a forgetting: see AMNESIA] 1. a pardon, esp. for political offenses against a government 2. Archaic a deliberate overlooking, as of an offense vt. amnestied, amnestying… … English World dictionary
Amnesty — Am nes*ty, n. [L. amnestia, Gr. ?, a forgetting, fr. ? forgotten, forgetful; a priv. + mna^sqai to remember: cf. F. amnistie, earlier amnestie. See {Mean}, v.] 1. Forgetfulness; cessation of remembrance of wrong; oblivion. [1913 Webster] 2. An… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
amnesty — *pardon, absolution … New Dictionary of Synonyms
amnesty — [n] pardon, often by government absolution, condonation, dispensation, forgiveness, immunity, reprieve; concepts 298,300 … New thesaurus