The Venezuelan opposition María Corina Machado, winner of this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, has made it clear that she will travel to Oslo to receive the prize on December 10, the Norwegian Nobel Committee declared this Friday.
“She herself has made it clear that she will come. At the same time, it must be noted that it is a dangerous trip because the Venezuelan regime has said that it wants to get her out of the way,” the leader of the Nobel Committee, Jørgen Watne Frydnes, told Norwegian public television NRK.
Frydnes hopes that Machado’s safety will be guaranteed and that he can reach Norway, “but also that he can return and continue the important work in Venezuela.”
Machado declared last October to the Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv that in order to travel to this Nordic country Venezuela had to be free and said that as long as Nicolás Maduro was in power he could not leave the place where he is for security reasons.
“I cannot leave the place where I am hiding because there are direct threats against my life,” he said.
According to the program of events for the Nobel Peace Prize, released by the Norwegian committee earlier this month, Machado will be present on December 9 at the prize winner’s traditional press conference at the Nobel Institute in Oslo.
The Nobel Peace Prize is chosen by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, made up of five people appointed by the Parliament of that Nordic country every six years, according to the correlation of forces in the Chamber.
Machado’s election was supported by the main Norwegian political parties.
Only two of the Labor government’s external allies, the Socialist Left Party (fourth force) and Red (sixth), were critical.
The Norwegian Peace Council, an entity that brings together 17 peace organizations and some 15,000 activists, announced a few weeks ago that it will not organize this year the traditional torchlight procession through the center of Oslo, on the day of the Nobel Peace Prize, due to its disagreement with the election of Machado.
Its president, Eline H. Lorentzen, described the decision as “difficult but necessary” and noted that “some” of Machado’s methods “are not in line with our principles and values or those of our member organizations, such as the promotion of dialogue and non-violent methods.”
The Norwegian Venezuelan Justice Alliancea Norwegian NGO that works “for freedom, democracy and human rights” in Venezuela, has announced that it will take over the organization of this year’s procession.
