從基督教民主聯盟獻金醜聞看德國政黨政治捐獻

Abstract

「政黨國家」(Parteienstaat)是德國民主政治中一項傲人的特色。一九四九年基本法賦予政黨政治責任，督促政黨力行民主化的決策過程，並且公開經費的來源與支出。再者，一九六七年制定的政黨法詳盡地規範政黨的角色，包括法律地位、正式任務、組織原則，以及國家經費資助制度的建立等。然而，自一九九九年底基督教民主聯盟爆發了財務醜聞之後，引起各界物議。其中，「政黨政治捐獻」為政黨經費的一項重要來源，在這次基民聯盟的財務醜聞中，亦是導至撼動德國民主政治基石的關鍵因素。該事件因涉及不實申報政黨經費、收取企業回扣、開設祕密帳戶，運用來路不明的政治捐獻從事競選活動，甚至基民聯盟領導幹部涉嫌偽造不實證據，層級之高擴及前任總理柯爾和重要官員，範圍之廣幾乎遍及一九九○年代以來所有的中央黨務領導幹部，乃至於地方階層的各級黨部。鑒於此醜聞對於德國政黨政治的影響甚鉅，本文旨在探討德國政黨經費與政治捐獻相關規範的沿革、基民聯盟醜聞事件的發展過程、改革現行政治捐獻弊端的芻議與評估，以及該醜聞對於德國政治發展的可能效應。我們以為，對於掌握權力的菁英而言，「金錢即是權力」與「金錢並非萬能，但卻能如願」這些觀點，就猶如劍之雙刃，實不可不慎。

The “Party state” is an important feature of German democratic politics. The 1949 Basic Law calls for political accountability within political parties, requiring democratic procedures decision-making and the provision of public statements regarding financing and expenditures. The 1967 Party Law also spells out the role of political parties in the usual Germanic detail. Legal guidelines, formal responsibilities, organizational principles, and state money are provided. However, the 1999 money-politics affair implicated the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in illegal funding schemes. Political contributions are one of the important sources of party financing and thus are a controversial locus of money scandals. It was revealed that some CDU leaders－Helmut Kohl and his henchmen－accepted large sums of money as party donations without declaring them as is required by law. Instead these party leaders stashed the money away in secret bank accounts, using some of the money to wage campaign activities. Ever since these revelations, Kohl and others have steadfastly refused to divulge the sources of these moneys, providing false, misleading, and incomplete testimony. The degree of corruption within the CDU inner circle has been shocking to many Germans. In view of the significance of the scandals, this paper examines some interrelated issues: a brief historical survey of laws regulating party contributions and spending; tthe origins, details, and impacts of CDU’s financial scandals; and analysis of the reforms proposed for contribution loopholes. We conclude that money and power are two sides of the same coin.