Venezuela's Maria Corina Machado makes first appearance in months after missing Nobel Peace prize acceptance ceremony

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel laureate Maria Corina Machado made her first public appearance in almost a year and waved to supporters from the balcony of her Oslo hotel. This comes after Machado informed Jorgen Watne Frydnes, Chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, that she would not be able to reach the Nobel ceremony in time and her daughter would accept the award for her. The Norway's government said that Machado will address the media later.

The Nobel laureate was last seen in public on January 9 when she protested Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro's inauguration for his third term. Machado took the risk to leave Venezuela even after warnings by Maduro's government that she would be named ‘fugitive’ if she flees the country. It remains unclear how she escaped the country.

Earlier in October, US President Donald Trump faced the Nobel Prize snub as the Nobel Committee awarded the coveted prize to Machado for the year 2025. In a statement, Machado praised people of Venezuela who helped her flee safely to Oslo and said, “So many people risked their lives in order for me to arrive in Oslo,” she told Frydnes. “This recognition is for the Venezuelan people. I want you to know that.” “I’m very sad and very sorry to tell you that I won’t be able to arrive in time for the ceremony,” she said. “But I am on my way to Oslo right now," she added.