ヤクザ倫理：なぜ日本の暴力団（ヤクザ）は長年日本社会で許容されましたか

by ジェイク・アデルシュタイン

日本の犯罪組織いわゆる暴力団（ヤクザ・極道）の構成員・準構成員は警察庁統計上では約8万人とされています。欧米人にしては「どうしてヤクザの存在そのものはまだ認められているのか」解せないところもあります。米国にはマフィアのファン雑誌は存在しないのです。マフィアの事務所もないのです。じゃあ、どうして日本では暴力団（ヤクザ）は禁止されないのか。歴史的な背景は別としてそれなりの理由と背景もあります。

古き良きヤクザには内部規律・倫理規定がありました。そして多くのヤクザは同倫理規定を守りきったのです。違反者は組織から破門されました。これらの倫理規定の厳重な施行は事実上、路上犯罪・一般犯罪を抑制する効果もあるとされています。

主に禁止された行為は

①   窃盗

②   強盗

③   破廉恥罪等

④   薬物の使用・譲渡

⑤任侠道として許しがたい行為

ほかの規則はヤクザ同士の付き合いを巡る規律。比較的に新しい規則は「当局と不必要な接触を禁ずる」。僕は読売新聞地方部で、埼玉県警の暴力団対策1-2課を担当した９０年代ごろ、暴力団専門家の刑事（マル暴刑事）はヤクザの事務所に立ち寄ってお茶を飲みながら情報交換することは通常でした。ヤクザと警察は、共存共栄という関係でもなかったのですが、凶悪な犯罪者を捕まえるためにお互いに協力した事件もありました。

倫理規定の話に戻りますが、当然のことですが、ヤクザはこれらのルールを守ると、空き巣・路上強盗・オヤジ狩り・強姦などの治安を乱す犯罪は抑制されます。言い換えれば、犯罪に走るような人格がヤクザになったら、一部の犯罪に手を染める可能性が低くなります。

現在、親分次第ですが、規律を重んじて厳守する組織はまだあります。

ただし、恐喝・脅迫・ゆすり（強請）は禁じられた行為に含まれていないのが不思議です。ヤクザ幹部から説明を求めました。彼はこう答えました。

「ヤクザに強請られている奴は大体、非道いことをやったんだからね。児童虐待や横領とか。悪行の報いを受けるべきだろう。我々は有料で社会正義を実現しているだけ。悪漢を懲らしめるのが、何が悪いでしょうか。君は記者でしょう。お前が政治家や行政機関の不祥事を暴露したりすると、それはよくないですか。お互いに悪い人に社会制裁を下していることでしょう。いいんでしょう」と丁寧に開き直りました。その場で反論できませんけど。反論をまだ考えています。（笑）

元総会屋は「我々は企業の監視役を果たしました。大手企業の醜聞を掘り出して脅した結果、相手が非を認めて襟を正したこともありました。まあ、それで金儲けもしました。だけど俺に言わせると、総会屋が動いていたなら、東京電力の暴走は差しとめられたかもしれない。お化け企業となったのは、総会屋がお尻叩かなかったから」と持論を熱弁します。むろん、彼は日本社会のためと思って活動したわけではないのです。私腹を肥やすのが本来の目的でした。といえ、彼の持論には一理あると否めないでしょう。

日本警察がこれほど厳しくヤクザをしめている理由は簡単です。多くのヤクザは倫理規定を守らないのです。「堅気に迷惑をかけない」という最大の不文律は空念仏となりつつあります。

後藤忠政元組長や某人身売買業者のようなヤクザは警察や世間の考え方を変えてしまいました。なぜかというと、二人は堅気を容赦なく搾取したうえ、後藤忠政組長が監督や一般人への攻撃を許し、殺しまで指示したか、黙認した可能性高いである。しかもヤクザ同士ならは別として敵と見なされた堅気の家族や友達まで危害を加えるようなことを容認していた模様です。

尊大な親分の言葉には非常に共感します。

「ヤクザは泥棒をやったり、強盗に関与したり、薬物をさばくほか、堅気またその人の家族や子供に手を出したりするんだったら、最早ヤクザじゃねえ。単なるマフィアですよ。掟を守らないヤクザはヤクザではない。愚連隊・ギャングと同様で人間失格です。ここまでヤクザは存続できたのは、警察や日本社会はから必要悪として認められたからです。単なる悪だったら不要です。内部からも外部からも任侠精神を持っているヤクザたるヤクザはどんどん消されていきます。我々の後継者は倫理規定や任侠なんて全く気にしていないのです。そういう建前さえどうでもいいと反省なき輩ばかりです。ヤクザがいなくなると、果たして日本の治安がよくなるかどうか、わらかないのです」と嘆きます。認めにくいが、彼の言葉には一理あるかもしれません。ヤクザにヤクザという稼業を辞めさせるのなら、仕事の斡旋や更正及び一般社会への復帰の道を作らなくちゃならないのです。そうしないと、ヤクザをつぶしたところ、より恐ろしい犯罪集団を生み出してしまう危険性さえあります。

確かに極道の社会では人道的な行動に励み、約束を守り、二枚舌を使わずに言動一致しているヤクザは絶滅品種に近い存在です。しかし、東北震災直後で古き良きヤクザが災害支援活動に励んだこともあり、ヤクザが必ずしも悪人と言えなくなりました。義理堅くて任侠精神を持っているヤクザ（少数）はまだいます。それを認めなくちゃならないのです。それが主流となれば良いけど。

Nirvana Day is celebrated in different ways and on different days both inside and outside of Japan, depending on the Buddhist sect and sometimes even the individual temple. For some, it’s a time to remember the recently departed (仏様・hotokesama) and to reflect on mortality. In some countries and at some temples, it’s a celebration of life and people gather together for small parties. In Buddhist metaphysics, it’s very hard to be born as a human–it’s chance that we don’t often get and simply to be alive as a human being and not a hungry ghost or demon or vermin is considered a cause for rejoicing. (I’m guessing that if you’re born as a rat it’s hard to store up enough good karma points to come back as a human. I’m not sure about monkeys or Henry Kissinger.)

This piece was originally written with TOKYO VICE in mind but I took it out of the final draft. Last year, the Buddhist/Meditation/Culture Magazine Shambhala Sun asked me if I was interested in submitting a piece and I pulled this out, rewrote it, checked my notes and sent it to them. Almost a year went by and before publication, I revised it once more. 2010 was a long hard year for me. I lost two good friends. One killed himself or was killed by his own people. He was a yakuza so that’s part of the trade, I suppose. The other was my lawyer and mentor, Igari Toshiro, who I strongly suspect was murdered and the job set up to look like a suicide. 仏 (hotoke) literally “a buddha” is a word that the police use a lot. Homicide detectives are fond of the word.  「ホシを捕まえないと、仏が浮かばれない/hoshi o tsukamaenai to, hotoke ga ukabarenai」. Loosely translated, “If we don’t catch the killer, the spirt of the dead will never rest.” It comes from a folk belief that those wrongfully killed are reluctant to leave the world until justice is done and roam the earth as hungry ghosts.In the case of Igari-san, I doubt that the people responsible will ever be brought to justice, at least in this life. Well, maybe there is karma in the universe and it’ll catch up with them in the next. I’d like to believe that but I’m not one for blind faith.

Despite writing about death, crime, betrayal, human depravity, and dealing with the aftermath a great deal, I’m not a morbid person; most of the time I’m pretty cheerful. However, I think that remembering our mortality is an important part of enjoying life.

My father is now close to 73. He’s been a county coroner for over two decades and yet he’s one of the happiest people I know. I asked him if the job ever gets him down and he says, “Of course, it does. But at the end of the day, sometimes, it makes me realize how lucky I am not to be the guy on the morgue table. Life is a precious thing and easily lost. When you know that, you treasure every moment and you really live. It gives you a greater perspective on things and what really matters and what doesn’t. Almost very suicide that comes in is a tragedy and so is every homicide. Almost any life lost is a tragedy. Because death is the one mistake you cannot undo. ”

Thanks to the Shambahla Sun for publishing the article and for giving me permission to post it on the blog. The names of the deceased in the article have been slightly changed out of respect for any relatives or friends that they might have had. Click on the picture or the link below to read the full article.

無縁仏. My essay from the March 2011 issue of Shambhala Sun

Muebotoke

The investigation has taken over four years and the TMPD believes that the killing was sanctioned at the top level of the Goto-gumi (now a defacto part of the Kodokai) and are continuing the investigation. Goto Tadamasa, the former leader of the group, now Buddhist priest, was found guilty of fraudulent activity pertaining to the building’s real estate deeds this year and given a suspended sentence.

For some footage of the arrest and more information see the Mainichi Shinbun article (in Japanese). Goto Tadamasa was one of the most infamous crime bosses in Japan. His organization attacked film director Itami Juzo, in 1992 after the release of the film Minbo (the Gentle Japanese Art of Extortion) and Goto himself managed to get a liver transplant at UCLA for himself and three other yakuza associates under dubious circumstances in the period between 2001-2004.

Adding to the US edition, UK edition, Australia/New Zealand edition and the German edition, that makes the fifth region that can now read about Jake’s infamous exploits in their native tongue, and I’m sure he’s thinking about the book tour opportunities right this minute.

Read “Touring the Tokyo Underworld“

WARNING: To be expected from Penthouse magazine, but ads on the page are very NSFW.

What had prevented the government from cracking down on yakuza before?

Japan doesn’t have a RICO act. It has limited wire-tapping. There is no plea-bargaining allowed. There is no witness protection or witness relocation program. There is no incentive for a low-ranking yakuza to rat out the people above him and a hundred reasons for him to keep his mouth shut.  For these reasons, most investigations often peter out before really getting off the ground. The branches get clipped, the roots remain untouched.

Jake was also interviewed by Devin Stewart (who added a nice authentic flair to the pronunciation of ‘Adelstein’) of the Carnegie Council. The 44-minute marathon covers all sorts of intricate details about the job, the beat and the yaks, as well as juicy retrospective thoughts about the experiences documented in Tokyo Vice. It’s a little long, but give it a listen! I might start calling Jake the “Yakuza Whisperer”…

And the last bit of news: Jake is about to head off to the land down under to promote Tokyo Vice, and on his travels will be appearing at the Brisbane Writer Festival on September 3 for a somehow appropriately titled talk, “Seed, Sex and Dirty Deeds with Jake Adelstein“. He’s apparently appearing in two other events, but neither sound nearly as titillating. Upcoming details on the rest of his Southern Hemisphere tour will be posted as they come in.

If I wrote a novel, it would probably only be to thinly disguise a true-story that had too much potential blowback to write as non-fiction. I tried to write the book as if I was talking to an old friend at a bar, and we were catching up. If you sit around with me long enough, you’ll probably notice that I talk like I write. Or vice-versa. I suppose I’m influenced a lot by the company I keep. Yakuza and cops aren’t exactly the most eloquent, flowery speakers.

Read the Tokyo Vice 3:AM interview here.

Their website makes it appear that the audio files are only up for seven days, so don’t miss these as they come out!

Listen to Tokyo Vice on Radio 4′s Book of the Week.

Tokyo Vice: An Education on The Way of the Journalist

An evening with Jake Adelstein, investigative journalist and author of Tokyo Vice

Thursday, April 29 7-9 p.m
Richards Auditorium
(Murkland Hall G115)

Jake Adelstein has experienced the dark side of Tokyo’s urban culture and emerged to tell the tale in Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan. Starting out in Japan as an American college kid in search of enlightenment, Jake got himself hired as a reporter for the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest newspaper and worked there for twelve years, becoming the only foreigner ever to gain admittance to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Press Club. While learning how to cultivate his relationships with both the police and organized crime in pursuit of the scoops and leads, Adelstein dove deep into a part of Japan most foreigners, and even most Japanese, never see. He recounts many of these adventures in his book and will share more with his audience here on the UNH campus.

This event is brought to the UNH community by the Deans Office of the College of Liberal Arts, The English Department and The Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures.

Hopefully Jake will see a few of our readers there!

Jake Adelstein will be giving a book talk for Tokyo Vice, possibly including the reading of an unpublished chapter, at Temple University on Friday, March 5. The event is organized by Temple’s Institute of Contemporary Asian Studies and is open to the public. Hope to see both familiar and new faces there!

Click here for more info.