SRINAGAR: Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize 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,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on Friday in Oslo.
Machado, 58, is recognised as one of Latin America’s most courageous figures in recent history, credited for unifying a deeply fragmented political opposition and rallying Venezuelans around the demand for free and fair elections. The Nobel Committee’s citation highlighted her role leading the pro-democracy movement amid a “growing darkness” in Venezuela, where state repression, election rigging, and deep poverty have pushed nearly eight million people into exile.
The industrial engineer and founder of the rights group Súmate was the principal opposition candidate in the 2024 presidential election, a contest from which she was barred by the Maduro government. After her disqualification and subsequent endorsement of fellow oppositionist Edmundo González Urrutia, Venezuela’s systematic suppression of dissent further intensified. Nevertheless, Machado continued to call for peaceful democratic change via international advocacy, civil society mobilisation, and meticulous election monitoring.
The Committee stressed that Machado meets all three criteria set by Alfred Nobel’s will; she has unified Venezuela’s opposition, resisted militarisation, and steadfastly supported peace. “She embodies the hope of a different future, one where the fundamental rights of citizens are protected and their voices are heard,” said Joergen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.
Speaking after the announcement, Machado expressed gratitude on behalf of the Venezuelan people, “We are not there yet. We’re working very hard to achieve it, but I am sure we will prevail. This is certainly the biggest recognition of our people that certainly deserve it,” she told the Nobel Institute.
The Nobel Peace Prize comes with a gold medal, a diploma, and a monetary award, and will be formally presented at a ceremony in Oslo on December 10.
