China: Using history as a mirror to navigate world affairs

FOR more than a thousand years, Chinese have used history as a mirror so as to learn lessons and not to repeat mistakes and have urged other countries to do the same thing. In that spirit, it may be appropriate to look back at China's history over the last century.

A hundred years ago, China experienced the May Fourth Movement of 1919, during which students protested against decisions made at the Versailles peace conference, which brought an end to World War I.

China was on the side of the Allies, having contributed 140,000 labourers. However, at Versailles, Britain, France, the United States and Italy agreed that Germany's concessions in Shantung, instead of being returned to China, would be transferred to Japan.