In Venezuela, Nobel Peace Prize for antigovernment activist elicits tears of hope, condemnation

CARACAS, Venezuela — Some saw the news as signaling the beginning of the end of the economic, political and social disaster that has ravaged Venezuela for the past decade, causing millions to flee their homeland in South America.

“When I saw the news, I cried, hugged my children and prayed,” said Mari Carmen Bermúdez, 34, a supermarket cashier in Caracas. “I have a feeling our nightmare will end soon.”

Others said the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to María Corina Machado, a veteran anti-government activist living in hiding here, was just the latest chapter in a US-led plot to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro.

“According to me, senora “Machado never called for peace in the country, he only called for war,” said Yober David Avalos, a 28-year-old white goods repairman and motorcycle taxi driver, and continued: “I don’t think he is a persecuted politician. He called for the invasion of Venezuela from where he was hiding.”

The mixed reactions to Machado’s award, both in Venezuela and across the continent, reflect the complex politics and shifting alliances in the region. He congratulated Machado, the conservative president of Argentina and the leftist leader of Colombia. Cuba condemned as “shameful” the decision to honor “a person who incited military intervention in his homeland.” Mexico’s leftist President Claudia Sheinbaum, the region’s leading female leader, refused to comment.

Some observers wonder whether the award will encourage the United States to act more aggressively against Maduro, whom the White House has branded a “narco-terrorist.”

There was no immediate official reaction to Machado’s award in Venezuela. The news made international headlines but was ignored by official news channels.

Machado declared on social media that the opposition was “on the verge of victory” and pointedly sent verbal bouquets to Trump.

“I dedicate this award to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his steadfast support of our cause!” Machado wrote.

It was a nod to a president who had openly campaigned for the award and was clearly angry about losing. The White House complained that the Nobel Committee had chosen “politics over peace.”

Machado reached Trump by phone in an apparent attempt at reconciliation.

“The Nobel Prize winner called me today and said, ‘I’m accepting this in your honor, because you really deserve it,'” Trump said in a speech in the Oval Office on Friday. “It’s a very nice thing to do. I didn’t say, ‘Then give it to me,’ but he might have thought so. He was very kind.”

While he is praised as Venezuelan by his supporters “dama de hierro” Machado – iron woman, a nickname given to British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher decades ago – is a controversial figure even within the Venezuelan opposition. Critics criticize his open praise for Trump and his policies and his refusal to back down on possible military intervention in Venezuela.

It remains unclear whether the award will influence Washington’s evolving policy towards Venezuela. Although the United States has raised the bounty on Maduro’s head to $50 million, Washington and Caracas are still cooperating at various levels: Venezuela is accepting US deportees and the Trump administration is allowing US oil giant Chevron to operate in the country.

“I think the United States is still where it was,” said Geoff Ramsey, a Venezuela analyst at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank. “Ultimately, Washington’s policy towards Venezuela is at a crossroads. The White House must decide whether to step up military strikes, engage directly with Caracas, or simply declare victory and move on.”

Machado said his political movement is ready to take over if Maduro falls and has a plan for the first 100 days of the transition.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited Machado’s “struggle to ensure a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy” in selecting Machado.

The details behind the Nobel negotiations remain secret. But a line of speculation has suggested that Machado was chosen in part because he was acceptable to the White House, perhaps to ease Trump’s discomfort with not winning the award.

Machado, 58, is a conservative and has openly advocated regime change in a government targeted by Washington.

Machado “nevertheless has a legitimate cause behind him, and this award means a lot to Venezuelans who are committed to democracy in an authoritarian context,” said Laura Cristina Dib, Latin America Venezuela analyst for the Washington Office, a research and advocacy group.

Amid allegations of widespread fraud, Maduro declared victory at the polls in July 2024 but refused to provide definitive data supporting his claim. According to the opposition, Edmundo González Urrutia, the candidate supported by Machado, was stripped of the presidency. Washington recognizes him as a winner.

On Friday, Machado refused to answer a question from Spanish newspaper El País whether he ruled out a US military intervention in Venezuela. He said governments must make a choice: “To stand with the Venezuelan people or to stand with the narco-terrorist cartel.”

In a recent appearance on Fox News, Machado did not object to the Trump administration’s policy of blowing up suspicious boats carrying drugs in international waters off the coast of Venezuela; these attacks led to the deaths of 21 people and human rights activists were attacked in what amounted to extrajudicial killings.

In Fox’s guest chair, Machado reiterated the White House talking points. “Maduro has turned Venezuela into the greatest national security threat to the stability of the United States and the region,” he said.

In addition, Machado failed to condemn Trump’s controversial immigration policies, including the deportation of more than 200 Venezuelan citizens to a prison in El Salvador in March, which have been condemned as illegal by human rights activists and Maduro.

Machado also did not address Trump’s plan to end the protected status of more than 500,000 Venezuelans in the United States; This is a move that could lead to these individuals being deported.

One hope, Dib said, is that “giving him the award is a way to hold him to a higher standard of achieving a democratic transition.”

The award resonated with many in Florida, home to the largest Venezuelan population in the United States, where both Republican and Democratic leaders praised Machado.

Rep. Carlos A. Gimenez (R-Fla.) called her “the world’s bravest freedom fighter” and added: “Maria Corina inspired us all and dedicated her victory to President Trump, the strongest ally the Venezuelan people have ever had.”

But some worried that Trump supporters angered by the perceived snub might hold the award against Venezuelans in the United States.

“We were already being criminalized and ostracized,” said Maria Puerta Riera, a Venezuelan-American political science professor in Orlando and Colorado. “This won’t help our image.”

Special correspondent Mogollón reported from Caracas, with Times staff writers McDonnell and Linthicum in Mexico City and Times staff writer Ceballos reporting from Washington. Times staff writer Andrea Castillo in Washington contributed to this report.