Venezuela pro-democracy figurehead Maria Corina Machado was briefly detained by security forces Thursday after emerging from months of hiding to lead a protest in Caracas, defiantly promising after her release that her country "will be FREE!" The 57-year-old engineer-turned-dissident appeared from among a throng of thousands of opposition supporters in the capital, climbing atop a pickup truck amid a massive police deployment. The protests were aimed at veteran leader Nicolas Maduro, due to be sworn in for a third six-year term on Friday despite a disputed election.