Nobel Peace Prize Winner Couldn’t Attend Ceremony?

Maria Corina Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize award, will not attend the ceremony to be held in Oslo on Wednesday, according to reports.

Machado was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize in October for her work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and her struggle to achieve a peaceful transition from autocracy to democracy. It is Venezuela’s first Nobel Prize. The Venuezuelan authorities imposed decade-long travel ban on 58-year-old Machado, known as Venezela’s Iron Lady. She had been in hiding for more than a year.

However, the Norwegian Nobel Committee had invited Oslo for the award ceremony to be held in the presence of King Harald, Queen Sonja and Latin American leaders, including Argentinian President Javier Milei and Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa.

Machado is accused of acts of conspiracy, incitement of hatred, terrorism and is under investigation for supporting the US’ deployment of military forces in the Carribean. She has accused President Nicolas Maduro of stealing the election, a claim backed by the many other countries.

Earlier, AFP reports suggested that Machado would travel to Norway to collect the honour. Machado has been living in hiding in Venezuela since 2024 presidential election. Venezuela’s attorney general Tarek William Saab told AFP that Machado would be considered a ‘fugitive’ if she travelled to Norway to accept the peace prize.