The Galactic Republic was corrupt. Many of its Senators and bureaucrats were corrupt. That became clear when the Senate would not lift a tentacle to save Naboo from attack by the Trade Federation when its people were dying.
Surely the Jedi knew the Republic was a democracy in name only, and that it was hopelessly corrupt. It was probably corrupt centuries before a politician named Palpatine began manipulating the Trade Federation and Naboo towards war.
They surely knew - or should have known - the inner worlds became wealthy by oppressing the outer rim worlds. This oppression led to many outer rim worlds breaking away from the Republic to create the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
By supporting it as peacekeepers and negotiators, the Jedi helped prolong the suffering of people affected by corrupt governments and corporations.
Why would the idealistic Jedi serve a corrupt system?
Edit: I am offering a bounty for an answer because none of the answers so far really satisfy the question. TheIronCheek provided a really good reply that my premise is flawed (and I even voted up that answer), but I disagree with the answer. I genuinely think the Galactic Republic was mostly corrupt. I will approve an answer that convinces me the republic was not corrupt or an answer that shows why the Jedi would support it knowing full well it was corrupt.
Consider these points which show the republic was corrupt and weak:
- The Republic can't break a corporation’s blockade of a defenseless planet in Episode I and many of the senators don't seem to care. If a corporation here on Earth tried to blockade a small country with a private army, would you expect the other nations to tolerate it?
- People are surprised to discover slavery still exists in the Outer Rim worlds. Thus showing the Republic's laws are not enforced, and where a government can't enforce its own laws, corrupt people will take over.
- By Episode 2, thousands of worlds were ready to leave the republic and form the Confederacy of Independent Systems, and I would say many of those worlds saw the republic as corrupt. We know the Sith Lords, Palpatine and Count Dooku, were behind the CIS, but the fact that thousands - rather than mere dozens - of worlds were ready to secede shows how weak the Republic was.
- The Jedi Council allowed Chancellor Palpatine to appoint a personal representative on the Jedi Council. Jedi Master Mace Windu said it was inappropriate but allows it anyway. (This may show the Jedi were more under the thumb of the Republic government than they wished.)
- Watto, the junk dealer on Tattoine, says "Republic credits are no use out here." This shows that if Republic currency was not respected in the Outer Rim, neither were its laws (such as laws against slavery). This is like asking if the US dollar is respected in an outlying state such as Alaska.
- Corporations get their own senators as shown by this line by Chancellor Valorum. "The chair does not recognize the senator from the Trade Federation at this time."
- Articles on Wikipedia, Star Wars Databank, and Wikia describe the Republic as corrupt.
If the Jedi are idealists as they claim, then why serve a corrupt system?
They could have done many things to lessen the corruption.
- Refuse to serve it until the Republic reforms itself.
- Protect people harmed by corrupt officials.
- Use their Jedi powers to expose corruption.
- Arrest the corrupt.
- Only serve republic leaders they believe are not corrupt.
- Serve only local governments they believe are just (e.g. - Naboo or Alderaan), in local ways, but not serve the galaxy-wide government.
- Protect non-corrupt worlds from corrupt organizations.
The Jedi don't do any of these, even though some would be easy to do. (Or "not do" in the case of refusing to serve.) The Jedi are astute. They should have known the extent of corruption. So that means they are serving a system that does not support their values.
Edit to add: I'd imagine many Separatists saw the Republic as corrupt and wanted to free themselves of its corruption. They surely saw themselves as the aggrieved good guys and the corrupt Republic as perpetuating suffering. And to see the nominally good Jedi supporting the corrupt Republic in battle probably harmed the reputation of the Jedi. I think a politically astute Jedi corps would have been aware of how their opponents would perceive them.
Edit to add: Qui-Gon Jinn knew the Republic was corrupt. He shared his thoughts about the corruption with his teacher, Count Dooku, as evidenced by Dooku's own admission. Dooku claims Qui-Gon not only knew about the corruption, but went along with it because Qui-Gon did not know the truth, or so he tells Obi-Wan. The implication is that Qui-Gon knowingly supported a corrupt government. (On the other hand, Dooku might be flavoring the truth about Qui-Gon's views or outright lying to Obi-Wan.)
Dooku: Qui-Gon always spoke very highly of you. I wish he were still alive. I could use his help right now.
Kenobi: Qui-Gon Jinn would never join you.
Dooku: Don't be so sure my young Jedi. You forget he was once my apprentice as you were once his. He knew all about the corruption in the Senate, but never would have gone along with it if he had learned the truth as I have.
That conversation comes from this scene in the movie, Attack of the Clones.
Count Dooku was so disillusioned with the Jedi serving a corrupt Republicthat he refused to serve the Jedi.
So the point is that some Jedi knew the Senate was corrupt, and yet they went along with it.
Answer
I love this question. It is one of the most fascinating dynamics of Star Wars, in my opinion.
Summary answer first, then I'll back it all up.
SUMMARY
The Jedi knew the Republic was corrupt, but went along with it because:
- They didn't know just how bad it was.
- There was nothing better at their disposal.
- They were happily complacent in their bubble where they can just pretend evil does not exist and hide the dark side from their students.
- They were too arrogant to open their minds to the idea that the Dark Lord of the Sith was not only in their presence, but actually had power over them.
- The dark side of the Force was masking the Sith presence.
- By the time they figured it out, they had little choice.
OBLIVIOUS TO HOW BAD
I think the Jedi knew the Republic was corrupt. They were simply in denial. In Attack of the Clones, Count Dooku explained that Qui-Gon Jinn knew all about the corruption in the senate, but went along with it. He also said that Qui-Gon would not have gone along with it if he were aware the the Dark Lord of the Sith was controlling it. This makes sense. They knew it was bad... but not that bad.
NOTHING BETTER
What could they have done? It's not like there was a second Galaxy-wide democratic government they could switch their allegiance to. As Obi-Wan put it:
OBI-WAN: Anikan, my allegiance is to the Republic, to democracy!
Even if true democracy wasn't really in the Republic anymore, the Republic was the symbol of democracy, politically. What else would the Jedi protect?
ARROGANCE & COMPLACENCY
I think the Jedi had become arrogant and complacent. Yoda even admitted to the arrogance:
OBI-WAN: His abilities have made him, well, arrogant.
YODA: Yes, a flaw more and more common among Jedi these days. Even the older, more experienced ones.
Mace Windu and Ki-Adi-Mundi demonstrated their absolute confidence that Count Dooku would never murder anybody:
MACE WINDU: You know, M'Lady, Count Dooku was once a Jedi. He wouldn't assassinate anyone, it is not in his character.
KI-ADI-MUNDI: He is a political idealist, not a murderer.
In The Phantom Menace, Mace Windu says the Sith could not have returned without their knowing.
MACE WINDU: I do not believe the Sith could have returned without our knowing.
YODA: Hard to see, the dark side is.
VISION CLOUDED BY DARK SIDE
Yoda and Mace Windu discussed their inability to see what was going on:
YODA: Blind we are, if creation of this clone army, we could not see.
MACE WINDU: I think it is time we inform the Senate our ability to use the Force has diminished.
The Dark side was clouding their vision:
PALPATINE: Master Yoda, do you think it will really come to War?
YODA: The dark side clouds everything. Impossible to see, the future is.
Confirmed by Count Dooku:
DOOKU: What if I told you that the Republic was under the control of the Dark Lord of the Sith?
OBI-WAN: Impossible. The Jedi would be aware of it.
DOOKU: The dark side of the Force has clouded their vision my friend. Hundreds of senators are under the influence of a Sith Lord, called, Darth Sidious.
Wiikieepedia backs this up: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sith_training
The Sith were trained to mask their presence.
FEAR OF THE DARK SIDE
In Revenge of the Sith, Palpatine/Darth Sidious explained that the Jedi stick to their dogmatic comfort zone.
ANAKIN: You know the dark side?!?
PALPATINE: Anakin, if one is to understand the great mystery, one must study all its aspects, not just the dogmatic, narrow view of the Jedi. If you wish to become a complete and wise leader, you must embrace a larger view of the Force. Be careful of the Jedi, Anakin.
from http://www.imsdb.com/scripts/Star-Wars-Revenge-of-the-Sith.html
This backs up how strongly against the dark side the Jedi had become. They were so convinced it was pure evil, wrong, and most arrogantly, that it was eliminated from the galaxy. In the old days, the Jedi used to teach students about the dark side. They understood the dark side. They knew what its strengths were, and they knew its risks. They knew how to avoid its temptations. In the time of the movies, they had become so set in their ways that they didn't bother talking about the dark side other than telling students that it is bad.
Shortly before Revenge of the Sith and near the end of the Clone Wars, Yoda is approached by the ghost of Qui-Gon Jinn and brought through trials where his internal dark side is tested. This was done to prepare him because it was clear that in order to survive the imminent Great Jedi Purge, they needed a Jedi who understood the dark side, was comfortable with it, and could avoid its temptations at all cost. He was put through a dream where he could learn who the mysterious Dark Lord of the Sith is in order to defeat him, but the cost would involve Yoda himself succumbing to the dark side.
See http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Destiny_(episode)
Ultimately, the wisdom that Yoda gained from this, which is that the Jedi are going to lose, the dark side must be understood rather than dismissed, and someone who can handle the dark side must survive at all costs. This, in my opinion, is why Yoda fleas his fight with Palpatine. It becomes clear to him that the odds of him defeating Palpatine in direct combat are, at best, 50/50, and perhaps worse. There is more at stake than him winning a battle. He had to put his ego aside and run away for the greater good. Compare this with Mace Windu, who bet everything on hand-to-hand combat, and never considered that he was being manipulated.
Yoda is the only Jedi who got it. Aside from Yoda, I think they were all so complacent that they didn't see any reason to resist the corruption.
Notice what went differently in Luke Skywalker's training. Yoda taught Luke about the dark side. He exposed him directly to evil temptations in a way where Luke could easily observe the consequences of it. Because of this training, Luke was able to use his inner darkness (fear, anger, hate) to defeat Darth Vader, without himself succumbing to the Dark Side. It was about balance.
A bit of a tangent, but I think it's all related.
NO OTHER OPTIONS
The Jedi knew the system was corrupt, but it was the best thing around, and they didn't know the Sith were manipulating it, through a combination of arrogance and the Sith hiding their presence extremely well. Simply put, the Jedi lived in a bubble and didn't figure out what was happening until it was too late.
The Jedi were backed into a corner. When they began to sense the dark side around them, there was really nothing they could do.
MACE WINDU: I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi. The dark side of the Force surrounds the Chancellor.
KI-ADI-MUNDI: If he does not give up his emergency powers after the destruction of Grevious, then he should be removed from office.
MACE WINDU: The Jedi Council would have to take control of the senate in order to secure a peaceful transition.
YODA: To a dark place this line of thought could carry us. Great care we must take.
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