Wellington
AP
–
New Zealand lawmakers voted Thursday to enact a record suspension from Parliament for three lawmakers who conducted Maori Haka to protest the proposed law.
Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke was banned for seven days, and leaders of her political parties, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer and Rawiri Waititi, were banned for 21 days. Three days were the longest ban for lawmakers in the previous New Zealand Parliament.
A MP for the Maori Party Te Party Maori played the challenged dance Haka in November last year, opposed the widely unpopular bill that is currently defeated, saying they would reverse the rights of Indigenous people.
However, the protest sparked months of debate among lawmakers over what the outcome of lawmakers’ actions should be, and whether New Zealand’s Parliament welcomed or cherished Māori culture and felt threatened by it.
A fellow committee of lawmakers in April recommended a lengthy punishment in a report that lawmakers said they were not punished for the haka itself, but ran around the floor of the debate room towards the enemy. Maipi-Clarke rejected it on Thursday, citing other cases of lawmakers leaving their seats and approaching the enemy without sanctions.
The suspension was expected to be approved as government parties have more seats in parliament than opposition parties and have the necessary votes to affirm them. However, the punishment was so severe that April Speaker of Congress Jerry Brownlee ordered a free debate among lawmakers, urging them to try to reach a consensus on what the impact is appropriate.
No such agreement was reached on Thursday. During time of emotional speeches, government lawmakers rejected opposition proposals to lighter sanctions.
Opposition lawmakers have proposed that they may extend discussions for more than a few days through their filibuster-style speech, but all lawmakers agreed that discussions should be over as the outcome is already certain and no one’s minds have not changed.
