Relationship of international law and municipal law — Crimes against international law — Punishment by municipal courts — Shooting of persons at Berlin Wall by border guards of German Democratic Republic — Prosecution of border guards for homicide following re-unification of Germany — Whether shooting justified to prevent escape to the West under Border Law of German Democratic Republic — Whether shootings at Berlin Wall comparable to mass murder by Nazis — Test of whether acts committed on order of the State exceeded limits set by universally recognized general principles of law — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 — Whether providing yardstick for universally accepted minimum standards

Human rights — Right to life — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 — Article 6(1) — Arbitrary deprivation of life — Border regime of German Democratic Republic — Instructions to border guards to shoot to kill if necessary in order to prevent escapes to the West — Whether constituting arbitrary deprivation of life — Principle of proportionality — Whether interest of German Democratic Republic in preventing escape of its citizens ever justifying use of firearms

Human rights — Freedom of movement — Right to leave one“s country — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 — Article 12(1) and (3) — General denial of right to nationals of German Democratic Republic — Whether violation of International Covenant

Human rights — Procedure for enforcement — Fundamental rights under Basic Law of Federal Republic of Germany — Article 103(2) — Non-retroactivity of criminal law — Scope of rule — Exception for acts which are criminal according to general principles of law recognized by the community of nations — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966, Article 15(2)

Relationship of international law and municipal law — Act of State and justiciability — Whether act of State doctrine a general rule of international law — Whether applicable in Federal Republic of Germany — Whether acts of foreign State subject to judicial review in Federal Republic — Whether Unification Treaty, 1990, preventing acts of authorities in German Democratic Republic from being reviewed by courts of Federal Republic

State immunity — Jurisdictional immunity — Foreign armed forces — Prosecution in Federal Republic of Germany of former border guard of German Democratic Republic for murder — Whether soldier acting as agent of foreign State entitled to jurisdictional immunity — Demise of German Democratic Republic following re-unification of Germany — Whether constituting a bar to assertion of jurisdictional immunity

Territory — Effects of change of sovereignty — Re-unification of Germany — Legal consequences — Whether border guards of former German Democratic Republic subject to criminal prosecution in Republic of Germany following re-unification

Treaties — Effect in municipal law — Conflict with municipal law — Whether treaty provisions taking precedence — Duty of courts to interpret municipal law consistently with treaty provisions if possible — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 — Effect of ratification by German Democratic Republic — Conflict with Border Law of German Democratic Republic, 1982 — The law of the Federal Republic of Germany