المعارضة الفنزويلية «ماريا كورينا» تحصد «نوبل السلام»

The Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado has won the Nobel Peace Prize for 2025, in recognition of her peaceful struggle for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela and achieving a fair and peaceful transition to civilian rule.

The committee stated in its announcement from Oslo today (Friday) that Machado was chosen "in recognition of her courage in defending the democratic rights of the Venezuelan people, and her insistence on achieving change through peaceful means despite repression and threats."

In her first statement after winning, Machado said: "I dedicate this award to all Venezuelans who have not lost hope for freedom. This award is a reminder that the world hears our voice, and that we are not alone in this battle."

A Long-standing Struggle

The committee indicated that the time is right to highlight "a long-standing struggle for democracy in one of the most repressive countries in Latin America," emphasizing that "peace is not only measured by the cessation of wars but also by the establishment of justice and freedom."

This victory represents a shift in international attention towards the Venezuelan crisis, which has worsened over the past decade, as the country has slipped into a suffocating economic and political crisis under President Nicolas Maduro.

The prize is worth 11 million Swedish kronor (about 1.2 million dollars) and will be officially awarded at a ceremony in the Norwegian capital Oslo on December 10, which coincides with the anniversary of the death of the prize's founder, Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel.

Prominent Opposition Figures

Machado (57 years old) is considered one of the prominent opposition figures in Venezuela since the beginning of the millennium. She was born in Caracas in 1967 to a well-off family involved in engineering and industry, and studied industrial engineering at the Andrés Bello Catholic University, later pursuing studies in public administration at Yale University in the United States.

She emerged in public life in 2002 when she co-founded the organization "Súmate," a non-profit civil movement that helped organize the referendum on the late President Hugo Chavez's continuation in power in 2004.

She faced harassment and accusations from the government of "conspiring against the state." Machado was elected as a member of parliament in 2010 representing the opposition and became known for her bold rhetoric against Chavez and then Maduro.

A Wave of Widespread Protests

After a wave of widespread protests in the country in 2014, the parliament stripped her of her parliamentary immunity and barred her from running for any position, but that did not prevent her from continuing her political activity, as she became one of the most prominent faces of the democratic opposition coalition.

In recent years, Machado has represented a reformist trend within the opposition, calling for a peaceful transfer of power and the rebuilding of institutions instead of slipping into armed conflict. She rejected resorting to violence despite the repression, asserting that freedom is seized through civil insistence, not through weapons.

She was barred from running in the presidential elections scheduled for 2024, maintained her leadership position within the opposition front, and remained a symbol of civil resistance in a country suffering from severe economic collapse, the migration of millions of citizens, and a decline in freedoms.

The Nobel Committee, by awarding the prize to Machado, aims to send a dual message: to support the efforts for democratic transformation in Venezuela and to emphasize the importance of peaceful struggle against authoritarian regimes.