Nobel Organizers Unsure About When Nobel Laureate Will Arrive for Award Event

A scheduled press conference by Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado, who is presently keeping a low profile, was called off on Tuesday. The award committee stated they are completely in the dark regarding her whereabouts.

Machado, Venezuela's opposition leader, has been in hiding since the country's disputed 2024 election. She and her allies maintain the vote was fraudulently taken.

She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts 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 remains a mystery.

"María Corina Machado has personally indicated in interviews how challenging the journey to Oslo, Norway will be," organizers said in a statement. "We therefore are unable to at this point provide any further information about when and how she will arrive for the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony."

The institute had earlier stated she would attend the ceremony physically. Earlier on Tuesday, a spokesman had commented that "all indications are" the press conference would go ahead despite a delay.

Government Stance and Legal Threats

Venezuela's authorities have declared that if Machado departed from Venezuela, she would be considered a "person fleeing justice" by the authorities. Her relatives are reportedly in Oslo.

Last month, Venezuela's attorney general, Tarek William Saab, told a news agency that "Because she is outside Venezuela and having numerous criminal investigations, she is regarded as a fugitive." He added she is facing charges for "acts of conspiracy, incitement of hatred, as well as terrorism."

Potential Return and Visibility

Machado had previously informed her followers that she intended 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 public appearance was at a protest in Caracas on 9 January, against the inauguration of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Political Context

Following Venezuela's 2024 election, the opposition groups published vote counts suggesting they had been victorious, despite Maduro claiming victory. Several nations, including the United States, have acknowledged its candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, as the president-elect. Ms. Machado was banned from participating in that election.