Amnesty
Etymology
From Greek “amnēstia,” “forgetfulness, oblivion,” from “a-,” “not,” + a root meaning “to remember” — the same root behind “amnesia” and “mnemonic.” Amnesty is, at its heart, an enforced forgetting: the state resolves to treat certain acts as though they never happened, which is a very different thing from forgiving them.
noun · /AM-nis-tee/
An official decision to pardon a group of people and let past offenses go unpunished, often for political reasons.
What it names
Use it for a deliberate, collective wiping of the slate — a state choosing to forget offenses in order to move forward.
Example
The peace deal included an amnesty for fighters who surrendered their weapons.
Related idea
A pardon forgives an individual for a specific offense, usually after conviction; an amnesty forgets an entire category of offense for a whole group, often before any trial. The difference is scale and intent — mercy for one person versus a political line drawn under the past.