Netizens were taken aback after they came across the video of an ‘angry’ New Zealand MP circulating on social media. It turns out that the MP, Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, was performing the traditional Maori ‘haka’ call. She performed the haka before in the Parliament in January 2024 while taking oath as the MP. But this time, she led the haka again to tear up a copy of the controversial Treaty Principles Bill.
The Parliament was briefly suspended on Thursday after Māori MPs followed Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke's lead and performed a haka to disrupt a vote on the Treaty Principles bill that has ignited protests across New Zealand. The bill proposes to change the way in which the Treaty of Waitangi – an 184-year-old treaty between the British Crown and Māori people – is interpreted.
Starting off on a low tone, Maipi-Clarke's haka call grew louder as she took the Treaty Principles Bill, and ripped it into two. The New Zealand MP left her seat and took to the centre of the Parliament hall to lead the haka — swift movements of hands, and show of fists—signalling the protest.
Despite the widespread uproar, the bill passed its first reading and will now proceed to a public submission process before another vote. BBC reported that thousands of protesters are expected to march on Parliament next week in opposition, underscoring the deep divisions the bill has sparked within New Zealand society.
Last week, the ACT New Zealand party, a junior partner in the country’s centre-right coalition government, unveiled the bill, which aims to define the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. The party contends that the bill will allow for a more balanced interpretation of the treaty through Parliament rather than relying on the courts.
First signed in 1840 between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori chiefs, the bill lays down how the two parties agreed to govern. The interpretation of clauses in the document still guides legislation and policy today.
However, critics argue that if passed, the new bill will further divide the nation and undermine crucial support for Māori communities, BBC reported.
