And the press statement of the committee could not be more clear:
"When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist. Democracy depends on people who refuse to stay silent, who dare to step forward despite grave risk, and who remind us that freedom must never be taken for granted, but must always be defended – with words, with courage and with determination."
Maria Corina Machado went on to dedicate the Nobel to the 'suffering people' of her country and to US President Donald Trump for his 'decisive support' for the her country's democratic movement
@anneapplebaum Venezuela’s Maria Corina Machado once described Trump as a ‘visionary.’ She just won his coveted Nobel Peace Prize
Edit: also - Nobel Peace Prize winner Mara Corina Machado supports Israel’s war and Benjamin Netanyahu? Here are the facts
The Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize to María Corina Machado, a leading Venezuelan opposition figure. Machado was set to run for president last year, but she was disqualified by the government of President Nicolás Maduro, with fellow opposition leader Edmundo González standing in for her. Venezuela’s National Electoral Council ultimately declared Maduro the winner of the contested election, and he was sworn in for his third term in January. Machado has voiced support for U.S. sanctions against Venezuela and other efforts to topple the government; she aims to privatize the country’s state oil industry and has praised right-wing Latin American leaders, including Argentina’s Javier Milei and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele. Friday’s Nobel announcement comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has openly campaigned for the award. “It’s a perplexing choice,” says Greg Grandin, a historian of Latin America. “They’ve given it to somebody who’s completely aligned with the most militarist and darkest face of U.S. imperialism.”
@anneapplebaum She primarily benefits from Western Imperialism. She's a lap dog of the US and like that clown Guaido, has been routinely trying to get the military to coup the Venezuelan government.
Once again, Nobel's press releases read like someone trying to cover for their violent associations whether that's TNT or being tied Western attempts to steal oil resources.
@anneapplebaum They also gave one to Kissinger, though.
When it comes to "people resisting socialist governments in the americas" we in Europe have long ago realized that US voices just are not trustworthy on that topic.
We have to figure things out the hard way.
In response to the award, Machado posted on X (strike one) and gave credit to dictator Trump (strike two).
So far the tally looks dire.
@androcat @anneapplebaum But they awarded it to Kissinger (and Le Duc Tho) for a very specific reason, though, much more narrow than the reason for awarding it to Machado.
Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho: "for jointly having negotiated a cease fire in Vietnam in 1973"
Maria Corina Machado: "for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy"
It is a fallacy to think that when the Prace Prize is awarded to a person, it would always be for the life work of that person, for everything they have done.
The fact of the matter is, when the US is against some latin american regime, they have very often lauded absolutely awful people as "peacemakers", people who in fact were CIA assets, or otherwise deeply partial, anti-labor activists.
So, again, the heuristic for a European to evaluate whether a latin-americas anti-socialist is "good people" or not does not, nor can it ever, involve US evaluations.
USians are simply not impartial on such questions.
I haven't made up my mind yet, but again, it looks pretty dire prima facie.
@androcat @tml @anneapplebaum
the Venezuelan Socialists are against Maduro and are allied with Machado to depose the dictator and establish a democracy, with true elections, and a parliament with left and right representatives debating peacefully and making decisions.
not only the Venezuelans, South American leftists in general.
European leftists instead are so dumb and so lucky, they'll support the most atrocious murderers if they just claim to be "socialist"...
@anneapplebaum
All negative comments talk about #USA and #trump, none about Venezuelans
This is how much too many leftists of the "first world" care about the freedom and welfare of the people in the "global South": these people are considered just talking points, to be used as tools in the political struggles in the rich, democratic countries where these leftists live.
An imperialist cast of mind, if you just think about it a little bit.
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