How did Nobel laureate Machado escape Venezuela, evading 10 military checkpoints?

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado arrived in Oslo after the news of her skipping the ceremony in-person.

Machado made her appearance in the middle of night on Thursday, December 12, by making a high stake escape from Venezuela. 

Her perilous journey involved disguises, a network of helpers, a dash by small boat marking a secretive flight to freedom.

The 58-year-old opposition leader was hiding for over a year. With her escape she defied a decade-long travel ban and threats from Caracas to label her fugitive to reach Norway and personally accept her award, hours after her daughter accepted it on her behalf in the ceremony.

As reported by Wall Street Journal, her escape was a two-month comprehensive operation planned meticulously.

To prevent her capture, she even wore a disguise and successfully navigated through approximately 10 military checkpoints to reach the Venezuelan coast.

From the coastal fishing village, she left Venezuela on Tuesday, December 9, aboard a wooden fishing skiff.

The escape was handled by her security staff and assisted by an insider Venezuelan network that helps people flee the country.

At first she reached the Caribbean Island of Curacao, from where she departed on a private plane for Norway.

According to the Wall Street Journal, there was involvement of the U.S. in the operation, although its role remains unclear.

The White House has not responded to any such claims yet.

Upon her arrival, she made an emotional appearance on the balcony of Oslo’s Grand Hotel where she waved at people and later jumped barricades to cheering supporters.

While talking to BBC, Machado shared her experience but remained secretive of precise details of her journey.

“They say I’m a terrorist and have to be in jail for the rest of my life and they’re looking for me," she said.

“So leaving Venezuela today, in these circumstances, is very very dangerous. I just want to say today that I’m here, because many men and women risked their lives in order for me to arrive in Oslo,” she added.

Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, who earlier presided over the awards ceremony, called her arrival “incredible” and described her journey as one of “extreme danger.”