In cases of crimes against humanity, according to this, actions must be in question which are punishable in themselves already, but in addition to this go further and are extended, so that they are "qualified" crimes. The dimension of the crimes is confirmed by the wording of the Russian text, which does not mention "homicide" but "homicides" in the plural, and not "persecution" but "persecutions" in the plural. The Russian text of Law No. 10 is worded similarly.

This opinion is confirmed in two places by the decision of the International Military Tribunal. The question of crimes against humanity is specially dealt with there in the section "War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity",¹ and in the section "The Law Relating to War Crimes and Crimes against Humanity".² Here the actions which are pronounced as crimes against humanity are characterized as perpetrated "on a large scale" and as "methodically" and "systematically" executed. They are called "terror politics" and are called "terrible and brutal" as well as "utterly ruthless", "deterrent and horrible". Not isolated murder nor isolated imprisonment nor the isolated boycotting of a Jew is meant, but only a general measure which violates "the most elementary laws of humanity".

These are not actions which an individual can execute alone; he needs organized help for that. Therefore the perpetrator can only be a commander; he who obeys is his tool and can only become a punishable assistant. Here the individual does not act from his own criminal motive, but he acts according to order and higher instruction. Therefore the motive of the action is basically political. Above all, the Hague Convention had in mind common crimes of individuals, which are rejected by the states themselves and which they themselves prosecute by penal law in the interest of humanity. For this purpose the states had issued corresponding national laws.

In the development of this idea, it is from now on a question of preventing political measures, which are methodically carried through by the state, by international penal law, i. e., measures which are rejected by the International Military Tribunal as "barbaric methods" and as "methods for breaking every resistance."

The rejection of such methods as crimes against humanity was expressed for the first time in the Hague Convention [Annex] in Article 222, according to which the belligerent nations have no unlimited right in the choice of means for doing damage to the enemy. Now the perpetrators of these actions are to be punishable.

Which means are still permitted in battle, however, and which methods are still admissible, can only be gathered from the practice of the states. If you look for an independent measuring rod for

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¹. Ibid., vol. I, pp. 226-228.
². Ibid., vol. I, pp. 253-255.