Venezuelan opposition leader and recent Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado was honored this afternoon at the Chamber of Deputies Auditorium as part of the IV Liberal Women's Encounter. Organized by Deputy Silvana Giudici (LLA), Vente Venezuela, and the Ladies of Liberty Alliance (LOLA), the event featured a message from Machado, who called to "honor the struggle of so many women for the freedom of Venezuela and the entire world." "Our planet is facing changes, and we are witnessing the emergence of all kinds of female leadership. In such terrible circumstances, Venezuelan women have instilled in their children an infinite love for freedom," she added. At the beginning of the event, Deputy Giudici presented a recognition to María Alexandra Gómez, wife of gendarme Nahuel Gallo, and Virginia Rivero, wife of Germán Giuliani, two Argentines detained in Venezuela: "We share the joy of María Alexandra who has Nahuel finally in Argentina." "However, this joy is overshadowed because Germán is still missing," the legislator recalled. As part of the first panel, Adriana Flores Márquez, Coordinator of Vente Venezuela in Argentina, highlighted María Corina Machado's role: "It is a passion for freedom, she was the leader of this process. Today, the Venezuelan embraces the ideas of freedom, we have learned how valuable it is." In the second panel, and as reported by the Noticias Argentinas agency, María Oropeza, Coordinator of Vente Venezuela in the Portuguesa State, stated that "the situation in Venezuela affects women in different ways, but this has not paralyzed us, but rather motivated us to fight for the change our country needs." "It is almost three decades of raising our voices until finally a very important government has listened to us. I want to thank the governments of the United States and Argentina because they have been fundamental in this fight to liberate our country," added Oropeza. At the end of the event, Patricia Bullrich, head of the La Libertad Avanza senators' bloc, also sent a message of support. "I hope with all my heart that Venezuela can soon have the sovereign decision to choose its government. They have fought for many years, have had a very hard time, and there are still political prisoners," stated Bullrich. "We need a free Venezuela where candidates are not extorted by anyone and democracy is full. We want a Venezuela that smiles again, that is a great country as it was before," she concluded.
