Sawt Falasteen - Venezuela's Machado to come out of hiding after missing Nobel peace prize ceremony

Machado, who won the Nobel for challenging President Nicolas Maduro's grip on power, has not been seen out in the open for months after threats to her life.

After saying that she was coming out of hiding to travel to Norway but would not arrive in time for Wednesday's prize ceremony, Machado will make her first public appearance at a press conference in Oslo at 0915 GMT Thursday, the Scandinavian country's government said.

Accepting the award on Machado's behalf in the Norwegian capital on Wednesday, her daughter delivered her blistering acceptance speech, in which she urged her compatriots to fight for freedom against "state terrorism" by Maduro against the Venezuelan people.

"What we Venezuelans can offer the world is the lesson forged through this long and difficult journey: that to have democracy, we must be willing to fight for freedom," said Ana Corina Sosa Machado.

In a call with the chair of the Nobel Committee, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, published just before the ceremony, Machado said she was "very sad and very sorry" that she would not make it in time but was on her way to Oslo.

Frydnes, for his part, urged Maduro to accept his 2024 election defeat and resign.

"Lay the foundation for a peaceful transition to democracy. Because that is the will of the Venezuelan people," he added in a speech, to applause.

- 'State terrorism' -

Machado in her speech also denounced kidnappings and torture under Maduro's rule, calling them "crimes against humanity" and "state terrorism, deployed to bury the will of the people".

Despite her absence from the ceremony, Nobel officials said she was "safe" and would arrive in Oslo by Thursday at the latest.

Venezuela has warned Machado that she would be labelled a "fugitive" if she left the country, putting her at risk of arrest when attempting to re-enter.

But her daughter assured the audience that her mother would return. "She wants to live in a free Venezuela, and she will never give up on that purpose," Ana Corina Sosa Machado said.

Machado's mother and three daughters, and some Latin American heads of state, including Argentine President Javier Milei, were at the prize-giving at Oslo's City Hall.

While organisers said Machado had previously indicated she would attend, doubts had already been raised when a traditional press conference with the award winner on Tuesday was first postponed and then cancelled.

Machado has accused Maduro of stealing Venezuela's July 2024 election which she was banned from. Her claim is backed by much of the international community.

She has been hailed for her efforts in favour of democracy, but also been criticised for aligning herself with US President Donald Trump, to whom she has dedicated her Nobel.

The Oslo ceremony coincides with a large US military build-up in the Caribbean in recent weeks and deadly strikes on what Washington says are drug smuggling boats.

Maduro insists that the goal of the US operations -- which Machado has said are justified -- is to topple the government and seize Venezuela's oil reserves.

- Not seen since January -

Since going into hiding, Machado's only public appearance was on January 9, in Caracas where she protested against Maduro's inauguration for his third term.

Multiple other Nobel Peace Prize winners have been unable to collect their prizes in person. Family members usually do so on their behalf, Nobel Institute director Kristian Berg Harpviken explained this week.

Doubts had been raised about how Machado would return to Venezuela if she made the trip. Her refusal to leave the country has helped boost her political power there.

"She risks being arrested if she returns even if the authorities have shown more restraint with her than with many others, because arresting her would have a very strong symbolic value," said Benedicte Bull, a professor specialising in Latin America at the University of Oslo.

On the other hand, "she is the undisputed leader of the opposition, but if she were to stay away in exile for a long time, I think that would change and she would gradually lose political influence", she added.

The Nobel laureates in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and economics all received their prizes from Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf at a separate ceremony in Stockholm on Wednesday before a lavish banquet.

The prize consists of a diploma, a gold medal and the sum of 11 million kronor ($1.2 million) -- which is shared when several laureates are honoured in the same category.

X.Habash--SF-PST