New Zealand’s parliament was briefly suspended on Thursday after Maori members staged a haka to disrupt the vote on a contentious bill that would reinterpret a 184-year-old treaty between the British and Indigenous Maori.

New Zealand's parliament faced upheaval during a debate over a controversial bill that seeks to redefine the nation’s foundational Treaty of Waitangi, extending rights originally promised to the Maori to all citizens.

Thousands joined a march toward New Zealand's national capital on November 15 after a contentious Indigenous treaty bill. Several rallies protesting against the Treaties Bill are being staged in towns across the country as a nine-day march.