Stirring 'haka' dance disrupts New Zealand's parliament

Wellington: Indigenous Maori lawmakers disrupted New Zealand s parliament with a stirring haka dance, voicing opposition to a race relations bill th...

Wellington: Indigenous Maori lawmakers disrupted New Zealand's parliament with a stirring "haka" dance, voicing opposition to a race relations bill that has ignited protests across the country.

A contentious bid to reinterpret a centuries-old treaty between New Zealand's Maori and European settlers was set to be debated in parliament on Thursday.

But proceedings were derailed when 22-year-old Maori Party MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke took to her feet, ripped the bill in half, and launched into the haka.

The rest of her party strode onto the floor of parliament to join her in the Ka Mate haka, a fierce ceremonial challenge popularised by the country's All Blacks rugby side.