Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has now won the Nobel Peace Prize for 2025. Yes, the same award that US President Donald Trump was also expecting. But this time the Nobel Committee chose not him, but this young leader who was continuously fighting for democracy and human rights.
The interesting thing is that this award has been given to the leader of a country which Trump considers his enemy. In recent months, tensions between Venezuela and America have increased. Although Trump has called Machado a freedom fighter. Machado is also called the Iron Lady of Venezuela. Let us know everything about her.
Who is Maria Corina Machado?
Maria was born on 7 October 1967 in Caracas. He holds a master’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Andres Bello Catholic University and a Master’s degree in Finance from IESA. Before joining politics, he took active participation in the family business and social campaigns.
In 2002 he founded Súmate, an organization that promotes election monitoring and civil rights. After this she laid the foundation of her political party Vente Venezuela and in 2010 was elected to the National Assembly with the highest number of votes.
Was a presidential candidate in 2024
Machado always stood against the dictatorial policies of Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro. He played a major role in the protests in 2014. He was arrested several times and barred from public office, yet his struggle continued.
Machado was the opposition’s presidential candidate ahead of the 2024 elections. He won 92% of the votes in the opposition primary election. In January 2024, the top court barred him from holding public office, but he continued to support opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez. It also got international support. Machado has been living in hiding in the country for more than a year.
Have received these honors even before Nobel
The Nobel Committee said that this honor is for his tireless efforts, advocacy of democratic rights and struggle towards peaceful democracy from dictatorship. Machado will receive 11 million Swedish krona (about Rs 10.3 crore), a gold medal and a certificate. The awards ceremony will take place in Oslo on December 10, 2025. Let’s take a look at them
2024 Sakharov Prize: The European Parliament gave him and Edmundo Gonzalez this award for defending democracy.
2024 Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize: The Council of Europe honored his hard work for human rights.
2025 Courage Award: The Geneva Summit for Human Rights gave him and Gonzalez this award,
2018 BBC honours: BBC included her among the 100 most influential women in the world.
