are peace agreements that give amnesty to those who have committed grave human rights abuses permitted under international law?
A. No. Such measures are not only prohibited under international law, they are also inconsistent with the responsibility that each state has to bring to justice perpetrators of human rights abuses. Most recently, a peace agreement to end the conflict in Uganda offered amnesty to all Lord?s Resistance Army (LRA) combatants, including Joseph Kony and the four other top LRA leaders for whom the ICC has issued arrest warrants on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Amnesty International believes that any agreement that includes an amnesty can only become a barrier to long-term peace. In order to rebuild a society based upon respect for human rights and the rule of law, the needs for justice and reconciliation must be recognized as complementary, rather than mutually exclusive. Amnesties have been rejected at the international level by the U.N. Secretary-General, the Security Council, the General Assembly, the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, the International Criminal Court,
