Nobel Organizers Unsure About When Nobel Laureate Is to Arrive for Ceremony

A planned media briefing by Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado, who is currently in hiding, was cancelled on Tuesday. The award committee stated they are without any clear information regarding her whereabouts.

Machado, Venezuela's opposition leader, has been out of public view since the country's contested 2024 election. She and her allies maintain the vote was fraudulently taken.

She was granted the Nobel Peace Prize for her work to bring democracy to Venezuela and was expected to formally collect the award at a formal event on Wednesday.

Despite regularly posting video updates on social media, typically in front of a plain white wall, her precise location is a mystery.

"María Corina Machado has personally indicated in interviews how difficult the journey to Oslo, Norway is likely to be," the Nobel Institute said in a statement. "We therefore are unable to at this point offer any additional information about the timing or manner in which she will come for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony."

The institute had earlier confirmed she would attend the ceremony in person. Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman had remarked that "all indications are" the press conference would go ahead despite a delay.

Official Position and Potential Consequences

Venezuela's authorities have declared that if Machado departed from Venezuela, she would be considered a "fugitive" by the authorities. Her family members are reportedly in Oslo.

Last month, Venezuela's top prosecutor, Tarek William Saab, told a news agency that "Because she is outside Venezuela and having numerous criminal investigations, she is considered a fugitive." He added she is accused of "acts of conspiracy, incitement of hatred, as well as terrorism."

Potential Return and Public Appearance

Machado had earlier told her supporters that she planned to go back to Venezuela after receiving the prize.

If she attends the ceremony, it would mark her first public appearance since January 2025. Her most recent appearance before cameras was at a demonstration in Caracas on 9 January, against the swearing-in of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Political Context

Following Venezuela's 2024 election, the opposition groups released tallies suggesting they had won, despite Maduro claiming victory. Several nations, such as the United States, have acknowledged its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, as the duly elected president. Ms. Machado was banned from running in that election.