MIAMI, USA
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado will not attend the award ceremony in Oslo because of severe security threats and travel restrictions imposed by Venezuela’s government, the Nobel Institute said Wednesday.
Kristian Berg Harpviken, director of the institute, told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that Machado “is not in Norway now” and will not be present when the ceremony begins at Oslo City Hall. Her daughter, Ana Corina Sosa, will receive the prize on her behalf.
Machado, a prominent opposition figure and leading challenger to President Nicolas Maduro, has been living in hiding since last autumn.
Harpviken said the Maduro administration has banned her from leaving Venezuela and continues to pose a direct threat to her safety.
“She simply lives with a death threat from the regime. That threat also applies when she is outside the country,” Harpviken said, adding that efforts to arrange safe transport to Norway became “more demanding than expected.”
Only a small number of people know her location due to the high risk.
Machado is being honored for what the Nobel Committee called her “tireless work to secure democratic rights for the people of Venezuela” and her pursuit of a peaceful transition away from authoritarian rule.
Independent observers say her coalition won last year’s presidential election, though the Maduro government did not recognize the result.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide described her absence as “a shame” but emphasized the significance of the award.
“It is always best when the Peace Prize winner is present,” he said.
“Machado’s ability to unite large parts of the opposition is what this prize highlights.”
Four Latin American presidents, including Argentina’s Javier Milei and Paraguay’s Santiago Pena, are in Oslo to show support.
Harpviken said it remains uncertain whether Machado will be able to travel to Norway at a later stage.
