“Venezuela Will Be Free”: Nobel Peace Prize Laureate María Corina Machado Addresses DRCLAS Tuesday Seminar

The DRCLAS Tuesday Seminar took on a historic tone this week as Venezuelan opposition leader and 2025 Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado joined Harvard faculty, students, and guests for a conversation on democracy, resistance, and the future of her country. Moderated by Steven Levitsky, Director of the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, alongside Harvard Government Professors Frances Hagopian and Alisha Holland, the session drew an unusually large and attentive crowd an occasion Levitsky marked with his first Tuesday Seminar tie since 2007.

Speaking from hiding inside Venezuela, Machado delivered a candid, moving, and at times defiant reflection on the civic uprising that has reshaped Venezuelan politics over the past two years. “We have turned a nation divided by a regime into a country united by purpose,” she said. “This movement goes beyond politics, it is cultural, generational, and rooted in shared values. And above all, in one longing: we want our children back home.”

Machado described a society transformed by grassroots organizing and collective courage, even as the Maduro government has intensified repression. Nearly 900 political prisoners are currently detained, she noted, some disappeared without a trace. Inflation has soared above 500 percent. Yet rather than demoralize the population, she said, these conditions have strengthened resolve.

“Hope in Venezuela is higher than ever, even in this painful moment,” Machado emphasized. “People know that freedom is close.”

She credited the Venezuelan people for achieving what analysts long deemed impossible: winning the 2024 presidential election by a wide margin, proving it mathematically despite censorship, and resisting division at every step. The newly released Freedom Manifesto, she explained, outlines not only the principles guiding the opposition but also the roadmap for governing the first 100 hours and 100 days of a democratic transition.

Beyond outlining institutional reforms, the Freedom Manifesto also sets out a vision for rebuilding the country’s social fabric. It calls for a depoliticized state, an independent judiciary, and a new social pact anchored in transparency and accountability. Machado emphasized that the document is not merely a political program, but “a collective commitment to rebuild a republic where the state serves the citizen and not the other way around.”

When asked about fears of instability or chaos if Maduro leaves power, Machado rejected comparisons to other conflict zones. “Venezuela is already in chaos,” she said. “What we will bring is order and no one should underestimate what a determined society can achieve.”

One of the afternoon’s most striking moments came when Machado reflected on Venezuela’s young generation—millions of whom have never known democracy yet continue risking their lives for it. 

“It moves me deeply to see young people fighting for freedoms they have never experienced. They give me hope—and they will rebuild this nation,” she said.

Audience questions from Venezuelan and Latin American students centered on unity, civic responsibility, and regional cooperation. Machado stressed that any transition will require accountability paired with pragmatic concessions, depoliticizing the armed forces, and rebuilding institutions “from the ruins up.”

Levitsky closed the seminar by noting the exceptional endurance of Venezuela’s democratic movement. “The fact that the opposition is still fighting after 25 years of authoritarianism is extraordinary,” he said. “We wish you safety and strength.”

The seminar ended with a sense of gravity and cautious optimism. For an hour, students and scholars were given a window into a movement unfolding in real time, one led by citizens who, despite repression, refuse to lose hope. Machado’s words, carried across borders and time zones, left an unmistakable impression: the future of Venezuela is being written not just by political figures, but by millions of ordinary people insisting on dignity, freedom, and a return to democratic life.

Machado ended with confidence and an invitation. “Venezuela will be free,” she said. “And I hope to welcome all of you there very soon.”