Former security minister Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee launched a veiled attack against her former ministerial colleagues yesterday, saying she should not take all the blame for triggering the 500,000-strong protest against national security legislation 10 years ago.
She also said she learned a lesson from the incident, and had since realised the importance of listening to public opinion.
Former justice minister Elsie Leung Oi-sie, a target of Ip's criticism, hit back. She stressed it was the policy bureau's job to sell the policy, and that her department was mainly responsible for "helping out" with legal matters.
In 2003, Ip was widely criticised for her aggressive style in trying to push through the Article 23 legislation under the Basic Law. She resigned weeks after the July 1 mass protest, and went to study at Stanford University.
On a Commercial Radio interview yesterday, Ip said there were many reasons people took to the streets a decade ago, and that she had been performing only the role of a salesperson in the legislative process.
Referring to then justice minister Leung, who was also involved in the legislation, Ip said: "I don't want to say that others put the burden on me, but [you can] see who was mindful about personal reputation and who did not come out to speak.
"A business friend asked me, 'Why has this become a Regina Ip bill? Originally, two women were selling it, but only one did in the end.'