CARACAS: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has branded opposition leader Maria Corina Machado a demonic witch just two days after she won the Nobel Peace Prize.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee named Machado the winner for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela.
The committee also cited her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.
The United States has long opposed the leftist Venezuelan leader’s rule under President Donald Trump.
The US has deployed warships in Caribbean waters off Venezuela under Trump’s administration.
Maduro has accused Machado of calling for a foreign invasion of Venezuela.
Ninety percent of the population rejects the demonic witch Maduro said without directly mentioning Machado.
He also did not comment on his political rival being awarded the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize.
The Venezuelan government often refers to her as la sayona a word that evokes a spirit in Venezuelan folklore.
This folklore spirit like the opposition leader has white skin and straight black hair.
Maduro spoke at an event commemorating the discovery of the Americas celebrated in Venezuela as Indigenous Resistance Day.
We want peace and we will have peace but peace with freedom with sovereignty Maduro said during his speech.
Machado supports US military maneuvers in nearby waters off the Venezuelan coast.
She dedicated her Nobel prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to Donald Trump.
Trump was also nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize this year.
During an appearance Saturday on Fox News Machado hailed President Trump.
He deserves the award because not only has he been involved in resolving eight wars in just a few months but his actions have been decisive in bringing Venezuela to the threshold of freedom she said.
