Sawt Falasteen - Venezuela's Machado vows to make Nobel Peace Prize ceremony

The head of the Nobel Institute, Kristian Berg Harpviken, told AFP on Saturday that Machado -- who lives in hiding in her country -- promised him she would make the ceremony, which is to take place in Oslo on Wednesday.

"I was in contact with Machado last night (Friday) and she confirms that she will be in Oslo for the ceremony," Kristian Berg Harpviken said.

"Given the security situation, we cannot say more about the date or how she will arrive," he said.

He added, on NRK radio, that "nothing is ever 100-percent sure, but this is as certain as it can possibly be".

Venezuela's attorney general, Tarek William Saab, told AFP last month that Machado, 58, would be considered a "fugitive" if she travelled to Norway to accept the peace prize, which she was awarded on October 10.

The December 10 date of the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony coincides with the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel, the Swedish inventor of dynamite who left most of his fortune to be used for prizes for people who have brought "the greatest benefit" to humanity.

Opposition activism in Venezuela has been muted since the arrest of some 2,400 people during protests that followed the most recent reelection of President Nicolas Maduro in July 2024.

Machado has accused Maduro of stealing the election which she was banned from standing in, a claim backed by much of the international community.

Machado, in hiding since August 2024, is a supporter of US President Donald Trump who himself has long coveted the prestigious Nobel peace award.

Trump and so far been unsuccessful, despite intense lobbying on his behalf.

Since returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump has insisted that he deserved the Nobel for his role in resolving numerous conflicts.

- 'Decisive support' -

The White House even lashed out at the Norwegian Nobel Committee after it gave the award to Machado, claiming it had placed "politics over peace".

However, Machado swiftly dedicated her award not only to the "suffering people of Venezuela", but also to the US president who, she said, had lent "decisive support of our cause".

"More than ever we count on President Trump," she wrote on X.

Trump has since became the recipient of a different peace prize: one created by the world football association FIFA and handed to him at the 2026 World Cup draw Friday.

A smiling Trump called the award "truly one of the great honours of my life", and claimed again that "we saved millions and millions of lives".

Machado agrees with Washington's assessment that Maduro heads a drug cartel, and has welcomed a beefed-up US military presence in the region, which has seen strikes on alleged drug boats.

Trump's administration insists it is effectively at war with alleged "narco-terrorists". But Maduro has accused Washington of using drug trafficking as a pretext for "imposing regime change" in Caracas.

Maduro has rejected a "slave's peace" for the region, amid mounting fears of US military action against his country.

The months-long US military campaign has so far killed at least 87 people dead in more than 20 strikes, including a "double-tap" strike in which two men clinging to the wreckage of their vessel were killed.

K.Hassan--SF-PST