Prison sentences finalized for 2 ex-presidential officials in artist blacklist scandal

Two former senior aides to ousted President Park Geun-hye did not appeal recent court rulings convicting them in connection with an artist blacklist scandal, leading to the finalization of their prison sentences. In a retrial last week, the Seoul High Court sentenced Kim Ki-choon, a former chief of staff for Park, to two years in prison and Cho Yoon-sun, a former senior presidential secretary for political affairs, to one year and two months in the case stemming from the Park administration period. The two had until Wednesday to appeal the decisions but did not do so. The scandal centers on allegations that the then government ordered the creation of a list of cultural organizations or artists critical of the government to exclude them from government subsidies. Source: Yonhap News Agency