New Zealand parliament debates controversial bill as protesters march on capital

FILE PHOTO: Protesters gather outside New Zealand's parliament buildings to protest policies seen as discriminatory to Indigenous Maori in Wellington, New Zealand, May 30, 2024. REUTERS/Lincoln Feast/File Photo

SYDNEY (Reuters) - New Zealand's parliament on Thursday began a heated debate on a contentious bill aimed at reinterpreting the country's founding agreement as hundreds of protesters continued their march toward the country's capital.

The ACT New Zealand party, a junior partner in the country's centre-right coalition government, last week unveiled the bill which aims to define the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.