Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke was warmly greeted by an audience of 35,000 outside the place she was suspended from for 24 hours just a week ago.
She has been an international viral sensation over the past week after leading a world-shaking haka in Parliament’s debating chamber.
Many A-list celebrities have shared the video, with it reaching far and wide, being viewed over 370 million times on Whakaata Māori’s TikTok.
She was suspended from Parliament for her behaviour for 24 hours.
“But the next day I showed up outside the steps with 100,000 of my people.
“This march was never about the bill, spoken.
“This march is about us, walking, marching, side by side, generation by generation. This bill divides us as a country; the Treaty unites us, all ages, all races,” the MP said.
The 22-year-old shared a karanga she made in the morning.
I welcomed you here and you have made me feel unwelcomed in a place where I belonged.
— Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke
She gave the “biggest mihi” to everyone who took part in the nine-day hīkoi.
“We’ve seen our people run, cook, pōwhiri, usher, drive, walk, traffic control, police, Māori warden, banner holders, ringawera, videographers, all ages, and all different races coming together for te Tiriti o Waitangi."
She called for the Māori in the crowd to switch to the Māori electoral roll.
“If every single Māori person registered on the Māori roll, we would have 20 automatic Māori seats in Parliament."
Currently, there are only seven Māori seats in the House of Representatives.
Ending the speech, she said the hikoi wasn’t just for iwi Māori but for all indigenous communities across the globe.
“The world is watching us te iwi Māori, whatever we do next. All indigenous people are relying on us.
“It’s not just about us te iwi Māori, it’s about us as indigenous people liberating ourselves to Hawaiki mau, so who’s coming with us?”
