Activist Datashvili urges EU to sanction Ivanishvili and ruling party members instead of Georgian People

Georgian civic activist Nino Datashvili on Wednesday appealed to the European Union from prison, calling for targeted sanctions and visa restrictions against the country’s “informal ruler” Bidzina Ivanishvili, members of the ruling Georgian Dream party, Government officials, as well as “propagandists, prosecutors, judges, and investigators involved in illegal actions” - rather than measures affecting ordinary citizens.

In her open letter, Datashvili, a civil education teacher and researcher at Ilia State University, stressed that the Georgian people are “fighting with sacrifice” for freedom and democracy, while the Government is cooperating with Russia and consolidating authoritarian rule.

She warned that suspending visa liberalisation would unfairly punish citizens who have protested for more than 250 days and many of whom, including politicians, journalists, teachers, doctors, and students, are now in detention for their pro-democracy stance.

Datashvili, currently held in pretrial detention, said her own case illustrates the scale of illegality in Georgia’s justice system, citing physical abuse in court premises and an unlawful psychiatric examination order.

She urged EU leaders not to isolate Georgia’s people but instead to apply individual sanctions against those responsible for “betrayal and criminal actions” undermining the country’s European path.