Advocates of the 'Nuremberg legacy' emphasize the positive impact of the individualization of responsibility and the establishment of an historical record through judicial procedures for 'war crimes'. This legacy has been cited in the context of the establishment and operation of the UN ad hoc International Criminal Tribunals in the 1990s, as well as for the International Criminal Court.

The problem with this legacy, however, is that it is based solely on the experience of West Germany. Furthermore, the effect of the procedure on post-conflict society has not been empirically...

The increase in the number of countries that have abolished the death penalty since the end of the Second World War shows a steady trend towards worldwide abolition of capital punishment. This book focuses on the political and legal issues raised by the death penalty in "countries in transition," understood as countries that have transitioned or are transitioning from conflict to peace, or from authoritarianism to democracy. In such countries, the politics that surround retaining or abolishing the death penalty are embedded in complex state-building processes.

In this context,...