Venezuelans have mixed reactions to Nobel laureate Machado traveling abroad

CARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado didn't arrive in Norway early enough to receive her Nobel Peace Prize in person, but her trip elicited mixed feelings in her country, where many backed her precisely because she had not left her homeland.

Machado's daughter accepted the award on her behalf in a ceremony Wednesday that became a rally for democracy, and equally, an indictment of Venezuela's government, with attendees hearing in detail documented human rights abuses carried out against real or perceived opponents of President Nicolás Maduro.

''She wants to live in a free Venezuela, and she will never give up on that purpose,'' Ana Corina Sosa told the audience in Oslo before reading her mother's prepared remarks. ''That is why we all know, and I know, that she will be back in Venezuela very soon.''

Machado greeted supporters from an Oslo hotel balcony early Thursday after arriving in the Norwegian capital.

Machado had not been seen in public since Jan. 9, when she was briefly detained after joining supporters in an anti-government protest in Caracas, Venezuela's capital. The following day, Maduro was sworn in to a third six-year term despite credible evidence that he lost the presidential election.

Machado intended to challenge Maduro in last year's contest, but the government barred her from running for office, forcing her to endorse retired diplomat Edmundo González in her place. Before and after the election, many voters said they backed Machado — and by extension González — because she had not gone into exile while the country came undone.

On Wednesday, some Venezuelans understood her decision to depart while others questioned why she was awarded the Nobel.

Meanwhile, shopkeeper José Hurtado called Machado a ''traitor'' for her support of U.S. President Donald Trump's policy toward Venezuela.

''Those awards are very discredited,'' he said.

The ceremony took place as Trump continues a military operation in the Caribbean that has killed Venezuelans in international waters and threatens to strike Venezuela.

González, who attended the ceremony in Oslo, sought asylum in Spain last year after a Venezuelan court issued a warrant for his arrest. His son-in-law, Rafael Tudares, is among the hundreds of people who are in prison for what human rights organizations have determined to be political reasons.

Independent experts backed by the United Nations, Venezuelan nongovernmental organizations and other groups have documented extensively brutal government repression throughout Maduro's presidency. Jørgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel committee, told attendees about repeated instances of torture, including the experiences of children who were detained in the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election.

Watne Frydnes then called on Maduro to ''accept the election result and step down.''

Flight tracking data show that the plane Machado arrived on flew to Oslo from Bangor, Maine. A crowd waiting outside her hotel chanted ''Freedom! Freedom!'' and ''Thank you! Thank you!'' after seeing her, and together, they sang Venezuela's national anthem.

It is unclear when and how Machado and González could return to Venezuela. An opposition plan to get González back ahead of the Jan. 10 ceremony that gave Maduro another term did not materialize.

''People are anxiously awaiting news about what will happen, about how Maria Corina receiving or not receiving the award will affect things,'' Caracas teacher José Murillo said.

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