the British Zone had considered that the act of complicity and the principalact were both crimes against humanity and that consequently accomplices should be sentenced for having aommittet!i a crime against humanity and not for being aoaomplices in the commission of such a crime. 44. As to the question of the time of commission of the offence, referred to in paragraph 2 of draft article 15, the Special Rapporteur pointed out that in some legal systema, such as the common law systems, far from limiting the definition of complicity to acts of prior to or concomitant with the principal offence, extended it to subsequent acts. The continental systems adopted, for the most part, a more restrictive approach. Some national laws, however, as well as the judqements of the French w de Wu&!&u, recognised that giving assistance after the commission of an offence could, in certain circumstances, constitute complicity. 45, Some members maintained that the Commission should not attempt to formulate a definition of complicity, or even of conspiracy, without first defining the criteria which characterised the perpetrator of a crime against the peace and security of mankind, by giving a material definition of the perpetrator, taking into consideration specific elements of particular crimes. Only after that had been done would the Commission be in a position to decide whether it was advisable to define the notion of complicity in great detail. 46. Other members, however, did not think that approach was strictly neces8ary, since criminal law did not generally define the perpetrator but rather the offence. The law started from the offences and proceeded to the perpetrators, to punish them according to the form of their participation. The Commission should not to be too ambitious in that respect8 some notions could not be defined with all the desired precision. Very often, in internal
**Analysis**
The text appears to be discussing a legal or juridical issue, specifically the definition of complicity and its relationship to crimes against humanity. The language used is formal and technical, with references to legal systems, national laws, and international commissions. The topic does not seem to be related to economic development, natural resources, or other categories that are typically associated with practical applications.

**Category**
International law, Humanitarian aid and relief