Nobel Organizers Uncertain When Nobel Laureate Will Arrive for Award Event
A planned media briefing by Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado, who is presently in hiding, was cancelled on Tuesday. The award committee stated they are completely in the dark regarding her whereabouts.
Machado, the leader of Venezuela's opposition, has been out of public view since the country's disputed 2024 election. She and her allies assert the vote was fraudulently taken.
She was granted the Nobel Peace Prize for her work to establish democracy to Venezuela and was anticipated to formally collect the award at a formal event on Wednesday.
Despite regularly posting recorded messages on social media, typically against a plain white wall, her exact location remains a mystery.
"María Corina Machado has personally indicated in interviews how difficult the journey to Oslo, Norway will be," organizers said in a statement. "We therefore are unable to at this point provide any further information about when and how she will come for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony."
The institute had earlier confirmed she would attend the ceremony in person. Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman had commented that "everything suggests" the press conference would go ahead despite a delay.
Official Position and Potential Consequences
Venezuela's government have declared that if Machado departed from Venezuela, she would be deemed a "fugitive" by the authorities. Her family members are already in Oslo.
Last month, Venezuela's top prosecutor, Tarek William Saab, told a news agency that "By being outside Venezuela and facing numerous criminal cases, she is regarded as a fugitive." He added she is accused of "alleged conspiracy, promoting hatred, and terrorism."
Planned Comeback and Visibility
Machado had previously informed her followers that she intended to go back to Venezuela after collecting the prize.
If she makes it to the ceremony, it would mark her first public appearance since January 2025. Her most recent appearance before cameras was at a demonstration in Caracas on 9 January, against the swearing-in of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Election Backdrop
Following Venezuela's 2024 election, the opposition published vote counts suggesting they had won, despite Maduro claiming victory. Several nations, including the United States, have recognized its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, as the president-elect. Ms. Machado was banned from participating in that election.
