A new law came into effect on Saturday with regard to crimes with a racial background. The threat of ; or violence against National ethnic, religious groups and incitement of hate against these groups will actively be followed up and offenders will receive sentences of up to 5 years imprisonment. The new law instigated by Arpad Göncz (State President) was accepted and passed by Parliament and which replaces the Penal-law paragraph156 (incitement). Hungarian Courts had the incitement paragraph where offenders could be imprisoned for up to eight years. However, skinheads who were convicted of violence against Roma were adjudged for body-harm and hooliganism and not for their racist acts of crime. In March a Budapest Court set free the Right Wing extremist Albert Szabo due to lack of criminal evidence. His political group together with others described the Holocaust as a lie.