Maria Corina Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo will go ahead on Wednesday without the Venezuelan opposition leader herself, after the Norwegian Nobel Institute confirmed that she will not attend and that her daughter will accept the award and read a speech on her behalf.
The institute’s director Kristian Berg Harpviken told Norwegian media that Machado “is not in Norway now” and “will not be on stage” at Oslo City Hall when the ceremony begins at 13:00. In her place, her daughter Ana Corina Sosa Machado will receive the medal and diploma and deliver an address written by her mother, while several Latin American heads of state are expected among the guests.
Why Maria Corina Machado is absent from Oslo
For weeks, speculation had swirled around whether Maria Corina Machado would be able to travel to Oslo to collect the Nobel Peace Prize. The opposition leader has lived under a travel ban imposed by the government of President Nicolás Maduro for around a decade and has been in hiding for more than a year, following her brief detention at a protest and renewed threats of prosecution.
A press conference that was supposed to mark her first public appearance in months, scheduled at the Norwegian Nobel Institute the day before the ceremony, was cancelled at short notice. The institute has said it does not know her current whereabouts and has underlined that security concerns and political pressure from Venezuelan authorities have made it difficult to arrange her travel.
Venezuela’s attorney general had previously warned that Machado could be treated as a fugitive if she left the country to attend the event. Human rights organisations have pointed to her case as an example of the risks faced by opposition figures who challenge authoritarian governments, noting that she has already faced criminal charges, expulsion from parliament and a long-standing ban from holding elected office.
A contested Nobel Peace Prize rooted in Venezuela’s crisis
The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded Maria Corina Machado the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 “for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy”. As the leader of the democracy movement and head of the opposition party Vente Venezuela, she has become one of the most visible faces of resistance to Maduro’s rule.
Machado won the Venezuelan opposition’s primary election ahead of the 2024 presidential vote, but the authorities barred her from running and upheld a ban that prevented her from holding public office. The opposition ultimately rallied behind diplomat Edmundo González, who later sought asylum abroad after an arrest warrant was issued against him. International observers and many Western governments said the presidential election failed to meet democratic standards, and the prize has been widely read as a symbol of support for Venezuelans demanding political change.
Supporters of the decision, including several Latin American and European leaders, say the award highlights the importance of non-violent struggle for democracy and keeps international attention on Venezuela’s humanitarian and political crisis. Critics, however, argue that the committee has chosen a polarising figure whose close ties to conservative and right-wing politicians in the United States, Israel and Europe risk deepening divisions both inside Venezuela and in the wider region.
The government in Caracas has reacted angrily to the prize. State media have dismissed the decision as interference by foreign powers and accused the Nobel committee of supporting a campaign to overthrow Maduro. The diplomatic dispute intensified when Venezuela announced the closure of its embassy in Norway shortly after the October announcement, a move the Norwegian authorities described as regrettable.
Protests in Oslo against this year’s peace prize
While many international guests are gathering in Oslo to celebrate the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, peace activists and solidarity groups are using the occasion to voice their opposition to this year’s choice. On the eve of the ceremony, organisations including Latin-Amerikagruppene i Norge, Norges Fredslag, Fredsinitiativet 2022, Stopp Nato, Antikrigs-Initiativet and the Norwegian section of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom called a demonstration outside the Norwegian Nobel Institute.
Under banners reading “No peace prize to warmongers” and “USA – hands off Latin America!”, speakers accused Machado of aligning herself too closely with hard-line US policies towards Venezuela and the wider region. They criticised her public support for former US President Donald Trump and for politicians associated with a confrontational approach to foreign policy, arguing that awarding her the prize risks legitimising military pressure and sanctions rather than strengthening international law and negotiation.
Two Norwegian members of parliament, Geir Jørgensen from the left-wing party Rødt and Gjermund Skaar from the Socialist Left Party (SV), were among those scheduled to address the rally. The protest illustrates how the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 has become a flashpoint in debates about the role of external powers in Latin America, the use of sanctions and the meaning of “peace” in highly polarised political conflicts.
An empty chair that echoes earlier Nobel ceremonies
Machado’s absence will leave a visible gap on the stage in Oslo City Hall, echoing earlier ceremonies where laureates were unable to attend because they were in prison, under travel bans or facing serious security threats. In recent years, the prize has gone several times to human rights defenders and democracy activists who could not be present in person, with family members reading their speeches and receiving the medal on their behalf.
For the Norwegian Nobel Committee, the situation underlines the tension between honouring individuals who confront authoritarian regimes and the practical limits on their freedom of movement. For Norway and other European countries, the empty seat highlights the broader question of how far external actors can realistically influence Venezuela’s political trajectory, beyond symbolic gestures and diplomatic pressure.
From Caracas to Oslo, the Nobel Peace Prize 2025 has become a mirror of Venezuela’s unresolved crisis. Whether Machado’s daughter’s speech will help galvanise support for a peaceful transition, or instead deepen the controversy around the award, will depend on how both supporters and critics interpret a ceremony where the main laureate is missing but the political stakes remain high.
