日本江户时代的政治贿赂与幕府的应对

The Political Bribery during the Edo Period and the Response of the Shogunate

江户时代是日本政治贿赂的高潮时期。江户幕府高度集权的幕藩体制构成政治贿赂的制度基础,幕府高官握有不受监管的重权,仅凭一己之念即可决定政治利益的归属。在这种滋生贿赂行为的政治体制下,各式贪官层出不穷。政治贿赂行为破坏了幕藩体制的稳定、削弱了幕府的财政基础,引发民众不满情绪,对幕府的统治基础构成威胁。因而不断有幕府官员大力反贿,试图扭转政治风气。江户幕府的行政管理方式、法律监督能力、经济利益分配形式、文化认知导向等因素决定了幕府的反贿赂应对均不彻底,政治贿赂直至江户幕府灭亡也未从根本上得到遏制。

During the Edo period,the political bribery in Japan reached its climax.The centralized system of the Edo shogunate was the institutional basis for the political bribery.The high-class officials of the shogunate held the unregulated power,and the ownership of political interests can be determined by their own thoughts.Under such political system bringing about bribery,the appearance of notorious corruptions never ceased.The political bribery not only damaged the political and social fairness,but also greatly hindered the administrative operation of the shogunate.Accordingly,after the corrupted officials lost their power,there would always appear some politicians who vigorously carried out the anti-bribery policy and intended to reverse the political atmosphere.However,the factors,including the political system,the economic situation,and the attitude to bribe of the bureaucracy and the public,determined that any anti-bribery effort would be futile.Even at the end of the Edo period,the political bribery was still not fundamentally contained.