The recognition of the leader of Vente Venezuela brings the democratic crisis in the South American country and the complex relationship between liberalism and authoritarianism in Latin America back to the centre of the international debate.

The Nobel Peace Prize 2025 to Maria Corina Machado is a strong signal, as symbolic as it is political. Oslo Academy wanted to reward “her tireless efforts in promoting the democratic rights of the Venezuelan people and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy”.

A motivation that, alone, sums up more than twenty years of confrontation between two visions of Venezuela: on the one hand, the Bolivarian socialism that has shaped the state; on the other, the demand for political, economic and civil freedom that Machado embodies.

An inconvenient figure for the regime

In her homeland, Machado is considered a divisive figure. Intransigent in her positions, she has been repeatedly excluded from elections, persecuted judicially and deprived of her political rights by Nicolás Maduro’s regime. But her stubbornness has guaranteed her a growing following, especially among the new urban generations, tired of economic stagnation and repression.

Leader of the movement VenteVenezuela, Machado describes herself as a centre liberal. ‘We are a liberal party of the centre,’ he said, ‘ so they say it is extreme right-wing, because for Marxists if you are not left-wing you are extreme right-wing’.

A phrase that perfectly sums up the ideological polarisation that dominates Latin American political discourse: the unresolved tension between individual freedom, social justice and liberal democracy.

A political signal to Latin America

The Nobel Prize to Machado is not only a personal tribute: it is also a direct message to the continent. Latin America is experiencing a phase of profound political uncertainty, in which the ideological pendulum swings between the return of left-wing governments and the rise of right-wing populist movements.

In this scenario, the figure of Machado represents a third space, that of a democratic liberalism that rejects both authoritarian caudillism and socialist messianism.

For Europe and the West, this recognition can be read as a reaffirmation of liberal values and the rule of law at a time when democracies seem fragile elsewhere. It is an invitation not to abandon Latin American civil societies to their solitude, but to consistently support those who continue to demand pluralism and independent institutions.

The symbolic value of the prize

Rewarding Maria Corina Machado also means turning the spotlight back on a forgotten country. Venezuela, once one of the most prosperous economies in the region, is now an example of institutional and humanitarian collapse. Millions of citizens have left the country, while inflation, corruption and violence remain endemic.

In this context, Machado’s battle takes on a universal value: the defence of political freedom as a necessary condition for any social progress. It is not an ideological battle, but a battle of civilisation.

A prize that opens a debate

Like every choice made by the Oslo Committee, this one too will be debated. Supporters of the Venezuelan regime will see it asforeign interference; defenders of democracy as an act of justice. But beyond opinions, the fact remains that, with this recognition, the world is once again talking about Venezuela and those who, like Maria Corina Machado, have not stopped believing in the possibility of a peaceful and democratic transition.

In times of growing mistrust towards politics, the Nobel Prize to the Venezuelan leader invites us to rediscover an essential concept: that peace, without freedom, is only a truce.