Watch: Haka protest disrupts New Zealand’s parliament

To New Zealand, where parliamentary proceedings have become rather, er, heated during discussions on the Treaty Principles Bill. During a debate about the relationship between Māori and the crown tabled by the libertarian Act party – in which the minority coalition partner is seeking to remove principles from the treaty of Waitangi that protect Māori rights – parliament was suspended after Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke led a haka in opposition to the bill. It’s certainly one way to protest…

Here's a better angle that shows the @Maori_Party performing the haka right up in David Seymour's face.

He looks shit scared. https://t.co/VM0Qx76P34 pic.twitter.com/JdBe6B5GlR

— Nick (@StrayDogNZ) November 14, 2024

But anger at the debate is not merely contained inside the chamber. Thousands of people across the country are joining a nine-day march to parliament in a public backlash to the bill, while more than 40 of the nation’s top lawyers have written an open letter to New Zealand’s PM Christopher Luxon, urging him to abandon the bill.