Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was injured while secretly travelling to Oslo to collect her Nobel Peace Prize, her spokesperson Claudia Macero said. Machado fractured a vertebra during a choppy boat ride as part of a clandestine escape from Venezuela, where she has been in hiding since being barred from the presidential election in July.
Machado’s journey reportedly involved disguises and a trip by boat from a small Venezuelan fishing village to Curacao, before boarding a private plane to Norway. Doctors at Oslo University Hospital examined her following the voyage.
Despite her injury, Machado made her first public appearance in a year from an Oslo hotel balcony, greeting supporters, while her daughter received the award on her behalf. The Nobel committee had praised Machado for her commitment to democracy and her role in Venezuela’s opposition movement.
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President Nicolas Maduro dismissed reports of Machado’s injury, saying on television that her “brain and soul” were broken and calling her a “demon,” while reiterating his opposition to Washington’s involvement in Venezuela.
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