<p>The Role of Amnesty as a Tool for the Current Transitional Justice in Ethiopia: A Comparative Analysis</p>

The study reveals that while amnesty has a pivotal role to promote reconciliation and secure stability, Ethiopia's current unconditional amnesty prioritizes political expediency over victims' rights and international duty to prosecute thereby serving as normalizing impunity without being a bridge to lasting reconciliation and societal healing. The study utilizes a qualitative comparative analysis approach to analyze the experience of selected jurisdictions to draw practical lessons for Ethiopia. The findings show that the Ethiopian amnesty framework fundamentally contradicts international laws and the FDRE constitution by shielding grave violations, such as war crimes and torture under amnesty provisions. It also impedes victims' rights; to truth, justice and remedy by prohibiting investigations and prosecutions and victim participation in the amnesty process. From Sierra Leone experience, the study draws a lesson that international crimes shall be excluded from amnesty provisions. Considering the South African model, the study advocates for designing a truth-for-amnesty model, which is conditional and victim-centered. From Rwanda's trend, a lesson of implementing a community-based justice and employing confession-and-guilty-plea procedures is drawn. The study, in response to the gaps, suggests for amending the amnesty proclamation in a way it aligns with international laws and the constitution by excluding grave violations, establishing a single torture convention, and by stipulating clear eligibility criteria such as disclosure of facts. Besides, to secure specialization, efficiency and public trust, independent institutions shall be established. The amnesty process shall also be victim-centered, and community based to end hostilities and bring sustainable peace via the instrumentality of amnesty.