Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado resurfaced in dramatic fashion on Thursday, emerging from nearly a year in hiding to greet cheering supporters in Oslo after being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Machado’s covert journey to Norway remains shrouded in mystery, and questions linger over how she will return home amid warnings from the Venezuelan government that she would be treated as a fugitive if she left the country.
Speaking to the BBC shortly after her arrival, Machado was resolute: “Of course I’m going back. I know exactly the risks I’m taking.”
She added that while she had long believed her place was inside Venezuela, “the place I believe I have to be today, on behalf of our cause, is Oslo.”
According to the Nobel Institute, Machado did “everything in her power” to reach the ceremony, embarking on a journey described as “extremely dangerous.” She ultimately arrived too late to receive the award herself. Her daughter accepted the prize in her stead, using the platform to condemn what she called “state terrorism” under President Nicolás Maduro.
In the early hours of the morning, Machado stepped onto a balcony of Oslo’s Grand Hotel, waving and blowing kisses to a jubilant crowd — her first public appearance since January.
Supporters chanted “libertad” (freedom) as she descended to meet them, climbing over metal barricades to embrace those who had waited through the night. Many offered rosaries, hugs, and prayers.
Machado later spoke of the personal toll her time in hiding had taken, saying she had missed graduations, weddings, and more than a year of physical contact with loved ones. “For over 16 months I haven’t been able to hug or touch anyone,” she told the BBC. “And suddenly, in just a few hours, I’ve been able to hold the people I love most and pray with them.”
Machado is scheduled to address the world at a press conference at 0915 GMT on Thursday.
Awarding her the Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Institute praised Machado’s “struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
In her acceptance message, delivered by her daughter Ana Corina Sosa Machado, the opposition leader urged Venezuelans to continue resisting Maduro’s authoritarian rule. “What we Venezuelans can offer the world is the lesson that to have democracy, we must be willing to fight for freedom,” she said.
Machado has long accused Maduro of stealing the July 2024 election, from which she was barred — a claim echoed by much of the international community.
The opposition insists its candidate, Edmundo González Urrutia, won the election. Now living in exile, González Urrutia was also present in Oslo.
Since contesting Maduro’s third-term inauguration on January 9 in Caracas, Machado has lived largely underground.
Her bold decision to leave Venezuela and appear on the world stage in Oslo carries profound political and personal risk — underscoring the high stakes of her fight for democracy.
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