Ato Yohannes Tessema, a member of the regional council who was arrested after filing a petition against the constitutional amendment of the Benishangul Gumuz regional state, was sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison and a fine of 15,000 birr.

Ato Yohannes was sentenced for "expanding urban land outside the scope of the lease proclamation," a case that was suspended five years ago and reopened last March.

Yohannes, the leader of the opposition Boro Democratic Party (BDP), was arrested in late February without his immunity being waived.

The BDP leader was arrested days after he, along with two other council members, filed a petition to “enforce” two proclamations passed by the Benishangul Gumuz Regional Council.

When Ato Yohannes was brought to court in March, his immunity was lifted and he was charged with "acting to undermine the constitution of the region" and "establishing ties with foreign forces."