As tens of thousands of marchers thronged the streets in New Zealand’s capital Wellington, the column of people, flags aloft, had the air of a festival or a parade rather than a protest.

Protesters oppose a bill drafted by a minor coalition party that aims to redefine a founding treaty of the country dating back to 1840.

Booming Indigenous Maori "haka" chants rang out across New Zealand's capital on Tuesday, as tens of thousands rallied against a conservative push to redefine the nation's founding treaty.