The Nuremberg Trial and its Impact on Germany

Dados Bibliográficos

ID12735142
AutoresChristoph Burchard (University of Passau, autor correspondente)
Ano2006
Volume4
Fascículo4
Páginas800-829
Data de publicação2006-09-01
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoJournal of International Criminal Justice (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1478-1395 • E-ISSN: 1478-1387
EditoraOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1093/jicj/mql052
OpenAlexW1966227541
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas7

The impact of the Nuremberg trial on Germany has changed over time. It is not only a question of evolving legal debate, but also a correlation of historical, political and moral developments. The author considers the reception of the International Military Tribunal (IMT) trial during the Cold War. West Germany rejected Nuremberg's historic precedent, principally on the grounds that the Allies had enforced victors’ justice, and that the Tribunal had applied ex post facto law by violating the nullum crimen principle. Meanwhile, East Germany seemingly took up the cause of Nuremberg by prosecuting minor Nazi perpetrators. However, this affirmation was politically motivated, and it led to inhumane abuses of power, exemplified by the Waldheim trials. The reunification of Germany marked the beginning of a positive approach to the Nuremberg legacy: the new generation of judges, politicians and academics was increasingly sympathetic to international criminal justice, and adopted the Nuremberg precedent by dealing judicially with crimes committed in the East during the Cold War. The study goes on to deal with the relevance of West German legal critique for modern international criminal law. The author suggests that a distinction should be made between true victims of international crimes and those who wish to revise history by portraying themselves as such, as many West Germans did after World War II. Moreover, the ‘victors’ justice’ argument must not be used to conceal the fact that justice has indeed been administered. However, the criticism of the IMT's violation of the nullum crimen principle is firmly grounded in the German, as opposed to Anglo-American, legal tradition

Economic Justice · Genocide · International law · Nazi Germany · Nuremberg trials · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Tribunal · War crime · Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics · International Law and Aviation · International Law and Human Rights · Law

Ferramentas

Abrir DOISci-Hub