According to the award justification, the two represent all Venezuelans who are fighting for the restoration of freedom and democracy.
13:52•Updated 13:56
The EU’s Sakharov human rights prize goes to the leader of the Venezuelan opposition Maria Corina Machado and was a presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia.
In its justification for the award, the parliament said the two represent all Venezuelans who are fighting for the restoration of freedom and democracy both inside and outside the country.
Machado won the primary last year to run in this year’s presidential election. However, according to the EU Parliament, the Venezuelan administration arbitrarily rejected him, and Gonzalez Urrutia became the candidate.
After widespread pressure and repression from the Venezuelan regime, the country’s sitting president Nicolas Maduro declared himself the election winner. Both the opposition and the international community have considered the official election results to be fraudulent.
In a resolution passed in September, the European Parliament recognized Gonzalez Urrutia as the legitimate president of Venezuela.