Original Title: Bitcoin is the currency of resistance, says Nobel Laureate
Original Author: Byron Gilliam, Blockworks
Original Translation: AididiaoJP, Foresight News
Maria Corina Machado received the news of her Nobel Peace Prize while in hiding.
The "Iron Lady of Venezuela" and "Joan of Arc of Latin America" has been in hiding since Nicolás Maduro threatened to impose "maximum justice" on her after the 2024 elections, which clearly showed her as the legitimate president of Venezuela.
Machado reported that she has faced assassination attempts and kidnappings since then, but she refuses to leave the country.
She sent her three children to safety abroad but chose to stay herself. According to the Nobel Committee, "this choice has inspired millions."
This is an example that should resonate beyond Venezuela: "Maria Corina Machado demonstrates that the tools of democracy are also tools of peace," the committee added.
Machado stated that one of these tools is Bitcoin.
She told the Human Rights Foundation that the Maduro regime "has weaponized the financial system against its people," citing hyperinflation that once reached 10 million percent in 2018.
Since 2008, the Venezuelan government has expropriated its citizens' savings by removing 14 zeros from its national currency, meaning that what could be bought for one bolívar in 2008 now requires 100 trillion bolívares.
"A bag of candy is worth far more than a bag of national currency," said a dispossessed Venezuelan, "because candy can retain its value."
Machado advocates that Bitcoin is a better and cheaper means of storing value: "Some Venezuelans have found a lifeline in Bitcoin, using it to protect their wealth and fund their escape."
However, Machado herself uses it not to escape.
"Our campaign operates without banking channels," Machado said. But they can still accept donations: "Unlike bank transfers that the regime usually blocks, Bitcoin donations cannot be confiscated."
In this sense, Bitcoin has helped Machado lead the fight against Maduro within Venezuela.
It has allowed many other Venezuelans to survive and resist Maduro.
"Bitcoin bypasses the government-imposed exchange rates and helps many of our people," Machado added. "It has evolved from a humanitarian tool into a vital means of resistance."
Another protesting Venezuelan, Jorge Hreissati from the Economic Inclusion Organization, stated that this makes Bitcoin part of a "technical strategy" against authoritarianism.
"The key to defeating authoritarian regimes is for citizens to have universal access to free technologies like Bitcoin, Signal, and Nostr," he wrote.
Bitcoin particularly empowers his compatriots "to overcome Maduro's financial surveillance and repression."
Many places around the world live under similar oppressive environments.
Alex Gladstein from the Human Rights Foundation estimates that "87% of humanity is born either under authoritarian regimes or in failing fiat systems."
He explained that in most of those regions, "traditional banking systems are no longer sufficient to effectively fund democratic work."
However, Bitcoin is "sustaining the vitality of resistance" in places where government-issued currencies "cannot be used for basic human rights activities."
Gladstein stated that Bitcoin is increasingly becoming the currency of these activities and is moving towards becoming "the standard currency for human rights activism and other fields by 2030."
We are accustomed to seeing Bitcoin's lofty price targets for 2030, but can it achieve a greater activist goal?
If it does, the Nobel Committee may be praised for lending a hand.
Gladstein pointed out that "the vast majority of Bitcoin critics live in the U.S. or Europe and are blinded by immense financial privilege."
By awarding the Peace Prize to an enthusiastic user, the Nobel Committee may help dispel biases and improve Bitcoin's image in that 13% of the world that does not need it (beyond as an investment).
For Machado, the main benefit of the Nobel Peace Prize is that she will be safer after becoming more well-known.
"This elevates her profile and increases the cost of attempts to suppress and destroy her," explained Gideon Rose from the Council on Foreign Relations. "By granting her efforts the recognition of compassionate international opinion, the Nobel Prize may protect her life."
So, for Bitcoin, the significance of the award lies in Machado's goodwill recognition of the often-maligned cryptocurrency, which may protect it from critics.
Because only authoritarian figures like Maduro would oppose free technologies.
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