Venezuelan opposition leaders receive the European Union’s top human rights honor

STRASBOURG, France (AP) — The European Union’s legislature has celebrated the bravery and staunch resistance of Venezuelan opposition leaders Maria Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia while awarding them the EU’s top human rights honor. The European Parliament president said the Sakharov Prize is “in recognition of your tireless efforts to restore freedom and democracy in Venezuela and ensure a fair, free and peaceful transition of power.” Machado was set to run against incumbent President Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela’s election this year. But the government disqualified her, so González took her place. Machado later went into hiding and González fled the country.