New Zealand’s Libertarian Leader Asked Not to Attend Major Maori Event Because of ‘Race Bill’

David Seymour, who is part-Māori, has been told it would not be appropriate for him to attend the celebration of New Zealand’s national day.

New Zealand government representatives including Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (C) ACT leader David Seymour (L) and New Zealand First leader Winston Peters (R) are welcomed onto Te Whare Rūnanga during a pōwhiri in Waitangi, New Zealand on Feb. 5, 2024. Fiona Goodall/Getty Images

The leader of the party which introduced the contentious Principles of the Treaty of Waitangi Bill—which seeks to put an end to any difference in the way Māori and non-Māori New Zealanders are treated under the law—has been asked not to attend Waitangi Day this year.

Each year a public holiday on Feb. 6 celebrates the day on which the Treaty of Waitangi, between the Crown and many tribal chiefs, was signed in 1840.