New York, Dec 5 (EFE).- Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said this Thursday during a virtual intervention at an event of the Venezuelan-American Association in the United States that the political transition in Venezuela "has to be carried out" and that the opposition is "more organized than ever". Machado, who is due to receive the Nobel Peace Prize on December 10 in Oslo (Norway), although it is unknown if she will attend, stressed that the opposition is now focused on defining "what comes next" to ensure that the transition "is orderly and effective". "We have a legitimate leadership and a clear mandate from the people," she stated, adding that the international community supports this position. The meeting was held at the headquarters of the international law firm Clifford Chance and brought together members of the Venezuelan diaspora in the United States, analysts, opposition leaders, and other actors who are struggling to maintain international pressure on the Maduro government. According to the organizers, the objective is "to give visibility to those considered legitimate to lead a possible democratic transition process", in contrast to the current government that controls the Miraflores Palace. Although the meeting did not result in concrete announcements —no roadmap was presented—, it made clear the intention to keep the debate active about the country's political future, emphasizing the importance of supporting "pro-democratic legitimate leadership", "strengthening the international visibility of the Venezuelan crisis" and "consolidating the role of the diaspora as an actor of pressure". Machado also this Thursday invited her fellow nationals around the world to march on Saturday "for peace and freedom" for the South American country, a mobilization scheduled four days before the delivery, in Norway, of the Nobel Peace Prize 2025, awarded to the former deputy. The Norwegian Nobel Committee recently stated that Machado has made it clear that she will travel to Oslo to receive the prize. The leader of the Nobel Committee, Jørgen Watne Frydnes, considered, in statements to the public channel 'NRK', that it is "a dangerous trip because the Venezuelan regime has said that it wants to get rid of her", so he said he hopes that the opposition leader's security is guaranteed and she can get to Norway, but also return to the country. Machado (Caracas, 1967) is the main opposition leader within Venezuela, where she remains in hiding, while Edmundo González (La Victoria, 1949), who was the opposition presidential candidate, resides in exile in Spain since September 2024, after fleeing the country when an arrest warrant was issued against him after Maduro proclaimed himself the winner of the elections. In her speech, the leader highlighted the resistance of the Venezuelan people, who "have suffered, but refuse to surrender", and pointed out that the opposition faces repression with "dignity and moral strength", including "exiles and political prisoners who have been separated from their families and have given everything for the democratic cause". Likewise, she thanked the President of the United States, Donald Trump, for recognizing that the transition in Venezuela is "a priority" and for his role as "a benchmark in international pressure on the Maduro regime". "Is change coming?" Machado concluded.
