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According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, to comply is to “act in accordance with a wish or command” , whereas to be complicit is to be “involved knowingly [...] often in something underhand, sinister, or illegal” . The line between the two is thin and easily crossed, as can be shown in several instances. What tends to separate the two is the context in which an individual acts and whether they are merely complying to an authority or knowingly acting in a nefarious manner. Complicity suggests a more sinister context to the situation with which one is being compliant; hence, the most evident situation where compliance becomes complicity is when an individual is aware of a present immoral environment.
In systems of moral corruption or dictatorship, the threat of punishment disincentivizes those who would usually fight for what is morally right, as they could face harsh punishments including imprisonment, torture, or capital punishment. The Gestapo's use of violence to enforce the law reduced efforts to overthrow the fascist system of antisemitism and other forms of prejudice, hence reducing efforts to withdraw compliance with the system. Additionally, in a regime as autocratic and terrifying as the Nazi’s, citizens may fall prey to the Bystander Effect, believing that ‘someone else will do something to prevent this’ rather than acting themselves. Due to the heavy implications of Nazi Party officials' compliance with Hitler’s system and their knowledge of Hitler’s actions, their compliance can be defined as complicity, which led to the Nuremberg Trials of 1945.
Within certain corporations, workers often follow policies that can have harmful impacts on human rights and the environment. Workers in the fast fashion industry, such as SHEIN, may comply with company practices to avoid job loss, despite knowing about child labor and worker exploitation. For example, SHEIN factory workers “work up to 18 hours a day with no weekends and just one day off per month” , far exceeding the Chinese legal limit of 40 hours a week. SHEIN workers in corporate roles in countries like the USA or the UK may feel it is not their place to call this out, leading to complicity with such unethical practices. Another example is the Volkswagen scandal of September 2015, where Volkswagen used technology to cheat emissions tests, causing severe environmental harm. A 2023 report on the scandal claims that “an additional cheating diesel car per 1,000 cars increases the low birth weight rate and infant mortality rate by 1.9% and 1.7% respectively” . Therefore, those compliant with the company’s actions were complicit in the harmful effects of increased pollution. “At least 30 people at management level in Volkswagen knew about the deceit for years”. These managers’ indifference and failure to act made them complicit in this scandal.
Compliance with authoritarian regimes, domestically and internationally, risks becoming complicity in the removal of freedom and democracy, leading to the justification of dictatorial rule and potentially large-scale conflicts. This has historical precedent with the appeasement of Adolf Hitler by UK PM Nevile Chamberlain in the 1930s. Domestically, standing up to such regimes can result in imprisonment or death, as in North Korea or Russia. A 2001 study suggests that increased capital punishment rates may have raised annual deaths from “1.4 million to two million” , indicating that compliance may be a survival method rather than complicity. Propaganda further prevents citizens from understanding their country's corruption; in North Korea, “approximately 90% of airtime on international news broadcasts is propaganda” . Thus, citizens comply for safety, possibly unaware of the broader implications of resistance due to the collective brainwashing brought through propaganda. Internationally, cooperation from democratic states with authoritarian regimes is seen as cowardly due to governments’ immense power compared to individuals. Many argue that WW2 resulted from Chamberlain’s appeasement of Hitler, allowing him to invade countries such as Poland through the ignoring of German rearmament. Winston Churchill summed up the counter-revisionist view in 1938: “You were given the choice between war and dishonor. You chose dishonor, and you will have war.” .
If you are eager to learn more about Neville Chamberlain's appeasement strategy then check put the video below
The thin line between compliance and complicity depends on the context and outcomes in corrupt systems. In morally corrupt or autocratic regimes, such as Nazi Germany, legal compliance can quickly become moral complicity due to the severe consequences faced by those who resisted. In the case of corporate compliance, employees who comply with harmful policies, such as those seen in the fast fashion industry or the Volkswagen emissions scandal of 2015, run the risk of indirectly becoming complicit in worker exploitation or increased levels of pollution and environmental degradation. Additionally, compliance with authoritarian regimes, both domestically and internationally, can lead to complicity in the perpetuation of oppression and conflict, as seen in the appeasement of Nazi Germany. The takeaway from historical accounts of times when compliance became complicity, is that compliance with authoritarian regimes can perpetuate oppression and conflict, with propaganda and threats blurring the lines between complicity and survival.
Fascinating insight Rosa!