Analysis
South Korea Cashes in on $6.7 Million of Former Dictator’s Art
Alexander Forbes
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600 art works from the collection of the former dictator of South Korea, Chun Doo-Hwan, have gone under the hammer since December, Art Daily reports. In total, the two houses responsible have managed to rake in around US$6.7 million in sales. An auction of 97 lots at K-Auction on Wednesday made double its estimate for a total of ₩1.36 billion (US$1.3 million).
However, the results lag far behind the full sum Chun Doo-Hwan owes the South Korean government in fines. According to a 1997 ruling, he was ordered to pay back ₩220 billion (US$205 million), ₩167.2 billion of which remains outstanding. Now 83, the former dictator was initially sentenced to death and later pardoned for his role in the the Gwangju Massacre in 1980 which saw as many as 165 people lose their lives.
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