– We hope she will come, even if it is not without risk, says maria Corina Machado’s daughter, ana Corina Sosa, whom NRK meets in New York.

She herself is in the process of packing her bags for the trip to the Nobel festivities in Oslo. Her two brothers and grandmother also travel there.

The last time the family saw Maria Machado was Christmas two years ago.

– my mother has lived in hiding for 15 months under constant death threats. I don’t know where she is today and we haven’t seen each othre for almost two years,says Sosa.

– How will you celebrate when you meet again?

– I don’t know. We will probably be overwhelmed, and have a lot to talk about. We talk regularly on the phone, but there’s also a lot we can’t talk about because the regime is watching, and we can’t lead them to where she is.

– But when we meet, I’m sure there will be tears and joy and hugs. I miss hugging her. I miss smelling her, and seeing her alive. We will use the time we have together well.

The Machado family has been separated for several years.It is an experience they share with large parts of Venezuela‘s population, where close to 8 million have left the country in the last ten years.

Photo: Peter Svaar / NRK

Called Machado “fugitive”

Venezuela’s Attorney General Tarek William Saab warned Machado in November against traveling to Oslo:

– By staying outside Venezuela while she has several ongoing investigations against her, she will be considered to be on the run, Saab told the AFP news agency.

Machado is accused of “conspiracies, incitement to hatred and terrorism” by the Maduro regime, which refused to relinquish power after the opposition, according to international observers, won last year’s elections.

But the trip to Oslo will not be a farewell to Venezuela,say

Venezuelan Activist to Receive Nobel Peace Prize

nearly a third of the population is affected by the political turmoil in Venezuela.

The separation experienced by Ana Corina Sosa and her brothers is one of millions of similar stories. This underscores the ongoing fight for peace, freedom, and democracy.

ana corina Sosa has built a life in New York city after leaving Venezuela 13 years ago. She works in the IT industry and dedicates her time to representing her mother internationally. Last year, she accepted the European Union’s Sakharov Prize on her mother’s behalf.

Her mother will hopefully accept the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo.