Booming Indigenous Maori "haka" chants rang out across New Zealand's capital on Tuesday, as thousands rallied against a conservative proposal accused of stoking racial divisions. Former conservative prime minister Jenny Shipley said the proposal threatened to "divide New Zealand in a way that I haven't lived through in my adult life".

One of the biggest protests in New Zealand history, led by Maori and with the support of diverse ethnicities and cultures, presented a petition signed by more than 200,000 people to parliament to “kill the bill”. Among those protesting was the Maori Queen Nga wai hono i te po.