• Thousands rally in Wellington against Māori Treaty Bill
• The demonstration marked the conclusion of a nine-day hīkoi
• The bill aims to legally define the principles of the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi
• However, critics see the bill as a threat to Māori rights and heritage

Thousands rally in Wellington against Māori Treaty Bill  

A massive protest unfolded in New Zealand’s capital, Wellington, as over 35,000 people gathered outside parliament to oppose a controversial bill seeking to redefine the Treaty of Waitangi.  

The demonstration marked the conclusion of a nine-day hīkoi (peaceful march), which grew significantly on Tuesday as participants arrived in Wellington. Many protesters wore Māori flag colours and carried banners denouncing the proposed legislation.  

The bill, introduced by the Act Party, aims to legally define the principles of the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi—a foundational agreement between British colonisers and Māori chiefs. Act Party leader David Seymour argues that current interpretations of the treaty have fostered racial division rather than unity.  

“My Treaty Principles Bill says that I, like everybody else, whether their ancestors came here a thousand years ago, like some of mine did, or just got off the plane at Auckland International Airport this morning to begin their journey as New Zealanders, have the same basic rights and dignity,” says Seymour, who has Māori ancestry.

“Your starting point is to take a human being and ask, what’s your ancestry? What kind of human are you? That used to be called prejudice. It used to be called bigotry. It used to be called profiling and discrimination. Now you’re trying to make a virtue of it. I think that’s a big mistake.”

David Seymour, ACT PARTY

‘It won’t become law’

However, critics see the bill as a threat to Māori rights and heritage. Opposition to the proposal sparked one of the largest protests in New Zealand’s history, with Wellington’s transport system experiencing unprecedented demand as demonstrators poured into the city.  

Leading the hīkoi was Māori Queen Ngā Wai hono i te pō, who guided the group onto the parliament grounds, where chants and speeches echoed through the crowd.  

Inside the parliament, debates over the bill continued. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, despite his coalition ties to the Act Party, assured that the legislation would not become law. “Our position as the National Party is unchanged. We won’t be supporting the bill beyond second reading and therefore it won’t become law,” Luxon said, according to the New Zealand Herald.

“We don’t think through the stroke of a pen you go rewrite 184 years of debate and discussion.”

New Zealand is often considered a world leader when it comes to supporting indigenous rights – but under Luxon’s centre-right government, many fear those rights are now at risk.