Raúl Castro was right, when he predicted on Jan. 1 that 2009 would be a tough year for Cuba.
Havana faced its worst economic crisis in 20 years, myriad scarcities, freezing foreigners' deposits in its banks -- with promised reforms stalled and its political cohesion put in doubt by one of the revolution's worst-ever leadership purges.
Crime and corruption increased, according to official reports. Bloggers as well as black Cubans fired increasingly daring darts at the government, but Castro gave no ground on human rights.
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