May Fourth Movement's legacy still inspires the nation's youth

This year marks the 100th anniversary of an anti-imperialist, cultural and political movement which originated in a series of student protests in Beijing. Zou Shuo reports.

On May 4, 1919, thousands of students gathered in Tian'anmen Square, Beijing to defend the nation's sovereignty and criticize China's representatives at the Versailles Peace Conference in Paris, who many people regarded as traitors.

Despite being one of the victorious nations of World War I, China's demands for reparations were rejected by the conference. Instead, the peace treaty gave Japan sovereignty over formerly German-occupied territories in Shandong province, which China believed should have been returned as part of the post-war settlement.