President Metsola presented the Sakharov Prize 2024 to Venezuela’s Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado at a ceremony on 17th of December in Strasbourg.

Opening the award ceremony of the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2024, President Metsola said: "In their quest for justice, democracy and the rule of law, Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado are fearlessly upholding values that millions of Venezuelans and the European Parliament hold so dear. This award is not just a recognition but also a reminder that the fight for freedom is never in vain. The future of Venezuela belongs to its people and the European Parliament stands proudly with them."

María Corina Machado, represented in the ceremony by her daughter Ana Corina Sosa, was elected opposition candidate for the Venezuelan presidency on behalf of the ‘United Democratic Platform’ in 2023, before being disqualified by the government-controlled National Electoral Council.

Edmundo González Urrutia, a diplomat and politician who succeeded Machado as the main opposition candidate after her disqualification, denounced the failure to publish the official results of the July 2024 presidential elections and contested Nicolás Maduro’s declared victory. He left Venezuela in September 2024, following the issuing of an arrest warrant against him, and was given refuge in Spain.