Abstract

Amnesty and pardon are two different manners of extinguishing criminal liability. Given some limitations and exemptions, they are provided by the internal Rights of the States and can be used as elements for the development of a transitional justice process. Their application to political crimes and offences thereto connected requires meeting rigorous international standards, since they must be compatible with principles of justice, truth, reparation and non-repetition. The Colombian legislation generally meets the international standards, although it constantly falls into excessive casuistry and emphasizes amnesty at the expense of pardon. Pardon offers a less radical form of impunity than amnesty, it is imposed upon those previously convicted in a process with all due guarantees. It should be reserved for crimes connected to political offences that, due to their evident or extreme gravity, would not be deserving of a conditioned legal oblivion, but of a beneficial extinction of punishment.

Presenters

Melba-Luz Calle-Meza
Profesora, Facultad de Derecho, Universidad Nueva Granada, Cundinamarca, Colombia

Details

Presentation Type

Paper Presentation in a Themed Session

Theme

Civic and Political Studies

KEYWORDS

AMNESTY, PARDON, INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL LAW, TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE

Digital Media

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