Veterans of the 1959 insurrection against Gen. Fulgencio Batista attend a ceremony to mark the 50th anniversary the Cuban Revolution in Santiago, Cuba, Thursday Jan. 1, 2009. Fifty years after triumphant armed rebels descended from the mountains, Cuba celebrated the revolution's anniversary Thursday with toned-down festivities following a trio of devastating hurricanes and under the enduring public absence of an ailing Fidel Castro. ISMAEL FRANCISCO / AP

A boy watches the 50th Anniversary of the Revolution ceremony on television in his home decorated with a photograph of Cuba's leader Fidel Castro in Havana, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2009. Fifty years after triumphant armed rebels descended from the eastern mountains, communist Cuba celebrated the revolution's anniversary Thursday with toned-down festivities after a trio of devastating hurricanes and under the enduring public absence of an ailing Fidel Castro. JAVIER GALEANO / AP

People listen to a speech during the 50th Anniversary celebration of the Cuban Revolution at the main plaza in Santiago, Cuba, Thursday Jan. 1, 2009. DARIO LOPEZ-MILLS / AP