‘WE STOOD OUR GROUND’, SAY NEW ZEALAND MPS – Suspended for treaty bill haka protest; a 185-year-old treaty between the British and the Indigenous Maori
In New Zealand, leaders of the Te Pāti Māori have vowed to stand firm following their unprecedented suspension from Parliament. The party says it refuses to be silenced by what it describes as “colonialist views”.
The suspension comes after a parliamentary privileges committee ruled that three Te Pāti Māori MPs had acted in a way that could be seen as intimidating to another member of the House.
The incident in question took place last November, when the MPs performed a haka ahead of a vote on a controversial bill.
That bill sought to reinterpret a 185-year-old treaty between the British Crown and the Indigenous Māori—an agreement that remains central to New Zealand’s laws and policies.
Parliament backed the committee’s recommendation. Co-leaders Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi will be suspended for 21 days, while MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke will serve a seven-day suspension.
During this time, the MPs will not be paid and will be unable to take part in votes or parliamentary proceedings.
