FREE www.caribbeanlifenews.com QUEENS/LONG ISLAND/BRONX/MANHATTAN Dec. 2–8, 2016 CARICOM MOURNS Several leaders pay tribute to the late Cuban leader By Bert Wilkinson 80s, angering the United States GEORGETOWN, Guyana – also led a PNP delegation to Grateful for the material and Cuba. other assistance the region got Washington made no secret from Cuba in recent decades, of the fact that it had played a Caribbean leaders rushed to significant role in undermin- Havana this week to participate ing the Michael Manley admin- in ceremonies relating to the istration on the island and death of Fidel Castro who is helped to supply guns to politi- perhaps the best known politi- cal gangs, which had terrorized cal brand to have emerged from the country during the period the region in the past century. of its now abandoned socialist Jamaican Prime Minister experiment. Andrew Holness, colleagues Cuba and CARICOM coun- Moses Nagamootoo from Guy- tries have a special bond dating ana, Gaston Browne of Antigua back to a stroke of political gen- and President Desi Bouterse ius by prime ministers Forbes from Suriname were among Burnham of Guyana, Manley those who hopped on planes of Jamaica, Eric Williams of bound for Cuba to register their Trinidad and Errol Barrow of presence at a service honoring Barbados. Castro on Tuesday night. In early December 1972, Some also had plans to stay the four sprang a monumen- on for the remainder of the tal political surprise on the week to attend services and world when they used political ceremonies linked to the burial stealth to officially establish of the urn with his cremated diplomatic relations with Cuba, ashes in the eastern Province largely ending the island’s of Santiago de Cuba where the American-imposed and policed revolution started. hemispheric isolation. The CARICOM Chairman Roo- move opened the floodgates to sevelt Skerrit also made the a rash of other nations to follow Roses and medals serve as a base for a portrait of the late Fidel Castro at Revolution Plaza, trip alongside heads from suit and prevented Washington the site of two days of tributes to the late leader, in Havana, Cuba, Monday, Nov. 28, 2016. Bolivia, Mexico, Venezuela, from checkmating it because of Cubans on Monday began bidding farewell to Castro, the man who ruled the island for Panama, Ecuador and Zimba- the secrecy that led up to the nearly half a century. Cuba’s government has declared nine days of national mourning fol- bwe. Former Jamaican Prime announcement. lowing Castro’s death Friday night at age 90. Associated Press / Ramon Espinosa Minister Portia Simpson Miller Cubans celebrated the move. whose People’s National Party To this day, successive genera- remains engaged in regional the two sides would have cel- strong bond between Cuba and administration had cultivated tions of leaders have recorded affairs. ebrated 44 years of unbroken the group of 15 nations has to dangerously close relations their appreciation of the recog- Castro died last Friday at age relations on Dec. 8. do with the exchange of mate- with Cuba in the 70s and early nition and have ensured Cuba 90, less than two weeks before Part of the reason for the Continued on Page 6 NEW PATIENTS* • Thorough Examination • Oral Cancer Screening • X-Rays Beautiful SmileBeautifulSmileBeautifulSmileSmile • Basic Teeth Cleaning $ Reg. 89 $425 Not Everyone Was Born With It... *unless gum disease is present ® Affordable Gentle Dental Care INVISALIGN SPECIAL at Sparkle Dental Specialists on staff: Endodontist (Root Canal Specialist) • Periodontist (Gum Specialist) Prosthodontist (Implants & Bridges Specialist) Starting At $3,999 FREE Treatment Consultation Required Are you tired of loose fitting dentures, or constantly using paste to keep Call Today! 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DANIEL GREENBAUM Board Certified Prosthodtist, with advanced training in implantology and periodontology. DDS Degree from Columbia University College of Dental Medicine in NY. 2 Caribbean Life, Dec. 2–8, 2016 BQ Unscrupulous landlords plead guilty By Nelson A. King Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and Act- ing Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Tuesday announced that two Brooklyn landlords have pleaded guilty to a scheme to defraud and to unlawfully evict rent-stabilized tenants by forcing or attempting to force them out of their homes. Cuomo and Gonzales said the land- Council Member Mathieu Eugene lords destroyed the tenants’ apart- lends his support to freezing rents. ments, making them uninhabitable in Offi ce of Council Member Mathieu Eugene order to collect significantly higher market-rate rents. Gonzalez said the investigation was initiated by the Governor’s Tenant Pro- tection Unit (TPU) concerning allega- Eugene tions of extreme harassment and intim- idation in many of the approximately 10 buildings owned and managed by Joel and Amrom (aka Aaron) Israel in Bush- advocates for wick, Williamsburg and Greenpoint. The Brooklyn district attorney, as a result, the case was referred to his office rent freeze for criminal prosecution. “New York has zero tolerance for those who seek to defraud or discrimi- nate against rent-regulated tenants try- By Nelson A. King ing to make a home for themselves and Brooklyn Council Member Dr. Math- their families,” Cuomo said. ieu Eugene on Nov. 17 joined Borough “Together with our state and local President Eric Adams, Department partners, the Tenant Protection Unit will Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-NY, speaks during the fi nal day of the Democratic of Finance Assistant Commissioner further crack down on unscrupulous National Convention in Philadelphia , Thursday, July 28, 2016. Pierre DeJean, community advocates landlords and ensure that those respon- Associated Press / J. Scott Applewhite, File and elderly residents at Brooklyn Pub- sible for this reprehensible conduct are lic Library in promoting enrollment held to full account,” he added. “The to vigorously prosecute building owners seek prosecutions and appropriate legal in Rent Freeze NYC. state is committed to protecting ten- who brazenly flout the law as they try to action to the full extent of the law on Eugene, who represents the 40th ants’ rights and ensuring access to safe, illegally evict protected tenants.” behalf of vulnerable tenants,” he said. Council District in Brooklyn, said the decent, affordable housing statewide.” New York State Homes and Com- “This prolonged scheme was particu- program, which allows eligible resi- Gonzalez said: “Landlords across munity Renewal Commissioner James larly devastating because it deprived dents and the disabled to stay in afford- Brooklyn should be put on notice by S. Rubin said: “The Governor’s Tenant tenants of plumbing and cooking facili- able housing, has been instrumental today’s felony guilty pleas that illegal Protection Unit continues to fight for ties for months, creating hazardous in helping tenants reduce their cost actions they may take to harass and the rights of tenants to live without fear and desperate living conditions,” he of living while remaining in safe and intimidate tenants in rent regulated of intimidation or abuse in apartments added. “This is the first of several crimi- familiar living environments. apartments will not go unpunished. that landlords are targeting for turno- nal referrals the TPU has made and it The Rent Freeze Program, which “Anyone trying to cash in on soaring ver to market rate. sends a resounding message that New includes the Senior Citizen Rent market rents by breaking the law and “When the TPU finds evidence of civil York State is working closely with law Increase Exemption (SCRIE) Pro- abusing tenants will face serious conse- or criminal wrongdoing – they advance enforcement and is at the forefront of gram and the Disability Rent Increase quences,” he said. “I promise to continue the investigations accordingly – and protecting tenants’ rights.” Exemption (DRIE) Program, helps residents remain in their homes on a long-term basis. Under the program, a property tax ‘Island of Flatbush’ Diabetes Expo on Saturday credit covers the difference between the actual rent amount and what the By Nelson A. King Indian people anywhere in the United coaches with the resources and tools to tenant is responsible for paying at the Stating that diabetes is ravaging the States that is outside the Caribbean.” conduct an effective warfare against the frozen rate, according to Eugene.