Teacher Nino Datashvili Released on Bail Amid Health Concerns
By Liza Mchedlidze
Thursday, October 30, 2025
The Tbilisi City Court has released detained teacher and activist Nino Datashvili on GEL 5,000 bail, citing her worsening health condition that requires two spinal surgeries. Judge Tamar Mchedlishvili granted the prosecution's request to replace her pre-trial detention with a milder measure after medical reports confirmed her need for urgent treatment.
Datashvili, arrested in June on charges of assaulting a public officer, had been held in pre-trial custody for more than four months. Her case had drawn increasing concern from rights groups and her family, who said her condition had significantly deteriorated in prison. According to her lawyers, she now suffers from severe spinal and limb pain and has developed mobility issues.
Speaking virtually during the court hearing, Datashvili thanked those who had advocated for her release. "Being released today is my salvation, thank you," she said. "The doctors and prison staff tried to help, but nothing worked. Now I need two surgeries to recover."
Authorities allege that Datashvili struck a court bailiff on June 9 after being denied entry to a Tbilisi City Court session due to lack of space. Video of the incident shows her being restrained and removed by several bailiffs, though the extent of contact is unclear. She was detained the following day and charged with assaulting a public servant.
The human rights organization Partnership for Human Rights (PHR), which represents Datashvili, said her health had reached a critical stage. "Medical care in the N5 penitentiary has not improved her condition. On the contrary, her health has become severely impaired," the group said on October 28.
Medical records from Vivamedi Clinic indicate that Datashvili suffers from spinal osteochondrosis and requires two operations, beginning with surgery on her cervical vertebrae. Her husband, Godi Pruidze, said she has lost partial mobility and relies on a wheelchair, describing "intolerable prison conditions" and warning that she risked permanent disability. "She urgently needs rehabilitation to prevent irreversible damage," he wrote online.
Datashvili's detention had previously sparked controversy after the court ordered a 20-day forced psychiatric examination in August, citing old medical records that mentioned "emotional lability." The move was widely condemned by psychologists, lawyers, and educators as politically motivated and reminiscent of Soviet-era psychiatric abuse.
In late August, Datashvili and her defense claimed that psychiatric experts entered her prison cell without notice to conduct an evaluation. Prosecutors later confirmed the examination had taken place, describing it as "in the defendant's best interests" and saying no further tests were planned.
Her release follows weeks of advocacy and public protest. On October 27, comedian Onise Okriashvili staged a symbolic demonstration outside the Tbilisi Opera House, where the Education Ministry was hosting the National Teachers' Prize ceremony, holding a banner that read "Freedom for teacher Nino Datashvili."
