The trial of a Hong Kong resident in Mainland China engendered a crisis of faith in the judicial independence of Hong Kong, explicit in the Hong Kong Basic Law that had been implemented after the United Kingdom transferred sovereignty to the People's Republic of China in 1997. Grave concerns were expressed by the Bar Association that the Mainland had no jurisdiction over crimes committed in the territory by Hong Kong residents as a matter of Mainland law; the Hong Kong public were concerned that if they commit a crime in Hong Kong, they might have to stand trial in the mainland if arrested there. However, the Chinese Government argued that though the crimes were carried out in Hong Kong, they had been planned in the mainland, so the PRC was entitled to exercise jurisdiction over the case. Under the Chinese Criminal Code, a Chinese national can be tried by a mainland court for crimes committed outside China if the offence warrants imprisonment of three years or more. Officials believed that although a "meagre part" of Cheung's case involved the mainland, it was right he be tried there.