Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado made her first public appearance in 11 months early Thursday, waving to supporters at a hotel in the Norwegian capital hours after her daughter accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on her behalf.

Machado has been in hiding since January 9, when she was briefly detained after joining supporters in a protest in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. She was expected to attend Wednesday’s awards ceremony in Oslo, where heads of state and her family were among those waiting to see her.

Machado said in an audio recording of the phone call posted on Nobel’s website that she would not be able to make it in time for the ceremony, but that many people had “risked their lives” to get her to Oslo.

Her daughter Ana Corina Sosa, accepted the award for her.

“She wants to live in a free Venezuela and she will never give up that intention,” Sosa said. “That’s why we all know, and I know, that she will return to Venezuela very soon.”

The speech did not address current tensions between Washington and Caracas, as US President Donald Trump continues a military operation in the Caribbean that has killed Venezuelans in international waters and threatens to attack Venezuela. Machado has consistently supported Trump’s strategy toward the country.

Many risked their lives for Machad’s arrival in Oslo, she says

Jørgen Watne Frydnes, president of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said at the award ceremony that “María Corina Machado has done everything in her power to be able to attend the ceremony here today – traveling in a situation of extreme danger.”

“Although he will not be able to attend this ceremony and today’s events, we are deeply happy to confirm that he is safe and will be with us here in Oslo,” he said to applause.

Machado said in an audio recording of the phone call posted on Nobel’s website that she would not be able to make it in time for the ceremony, but that many people had “risked their lives” to get her to Oslo.

“I am very grateful to them and this is a measure of what this recognition means to the Venezuelan people,” she said before letting it be known that she was about to board the plane.

“Because this is a prize for all Venezuelans,” she said, “I believe they will get it. And as soon as I arrive, I will be able to hug all my family and my children whom I have not seen for two years and so many Venezuelans, Norwegians who I know share our struggle and our struggle.”

Show solidarity

Prominent figures from Latin America attended Wednesday in solidarity with Machado, including Argentine President Javier Miley, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulin and Paraguayan President Santiago Peña.

The 58-year-old Machado’s victory for her fight to achieve a democratic transition in her South American country was announced on October 10. Watne Frydnes said that “Venezuela has evolved into a brutal authoritarian state” and described Machado as “one of the most extraordinary examples of civil courage in the recent history of Latin America”.

Machado won an opposition primary and intended to challenge President Nicolás Maduro in last year’s presidential election, but was barred from running by the government. She was replaced by retired diplomat Edmundo González.

The run-up to the July 28, 2024 election has been marked by widespread repression, including disqualifications, arrests and human rights violations. That increased after the country’s National Electoral Council, which is packed with Maduro loyalists, declared the incumbent president the winner.

González, who sought asylum in Spain last year after a Venezuelan court issued a warrant for his arrest, attended Wednesday’s ceremony.

UN human rights officials and many independent human rights groups have expressed concern about the situation in Venezuela and called for Maduro to be held accountable for cracking down on dissent.

“More than anything, what we Venezuelans can offer the world is a lesson forged through this long and difficult journey – to have democracy, we must be ready to fight for freedom,” Sosa said as she delivered a lecture her mother had written for the occasion.