Friday 15/November/2024 – 11:21 PM
The scene of the Haka dance made headlines on social media after a Maori member of the New Zealand Parliament objected to a bill related to indigenous peoples, which would reinterpret a 184-year-old treaty between the British and the indigenous Maori.
Indigenous people interrupt the Parliament Party with the Haka dance
According to CNN, the Treaty of Waitangi was first signed in 1840 between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori leaders. The treaty stipulates how the two parties agree to govern, and the interpretation of the terms in the document still guides legislation and policy today.
New Zealand’s ACT Party, a junior partner in the ruling centre-right coalition government, last week unveiled a draft bill to enshrine a narrower interpretation of the Treaty of Waitangi into law.
As parliamentarians met for the initial vote on the bill, Te Pati Māori MPs stood up and began performing the haka, a traditional Māori dance made famous by the New Zealand rugby team.
Maori relationship with non-indigenous citizens
Court rulings and a separate Māori Tribunal have gradually expanded Māori rights and privileges over the decades, however, some claim this has amounted to discrimination against non-indigenous citizens.
As a result, the New Zealand Parliament was briefly suspended as people at the exhibition joined in shouting and dancing with each other, and although the bill passed its first reading, it is unlikely to gain enough support to pass into law.
