Pourewa Te Rata says he is at the hikoi with his mates, cousins and whānau. Photo: RNZ/Layla Bailey-McDowell
You can follow our liveblog of the hīkoi at Parliament here.
Education Minister Erica Stanford has expressed disapproval at the number of children participating in today's hīkoi.
"We need our kids in class in front of our amazing teachers," she said. "Children need to be in class every opportunity they have so we can raise achievement rates."
Stanford said if schools were holding an "education-outside-the-classroom" activity, they needed to ensure it had a literacy and numeracy component.
But Tapeta Wehi, the son of haka expert Ngāpo Wehi, is in Wellington with students from Te Wharekura o Rakaumangamanga who have travelled down from Huntly.
He said it was important rangatahi had the chance to be part of the events.
"I'm hearing out there that these kids should be at school, but this is all part of our learning, this is their school."
Those rangatahi, as well as Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke and Māori queen Nga wai hono i te po were the "next generation" and the "face" of the movement, Wehi said.
A hīkoi against the Treaty Principles Bill has reached Wellington today.
Dot Bax and her nine-year-old son Felix made the impromptu decision to get in their truck in Whangārei on Monday morning, to get to the hīkoi .
"We had to do what we had to do," she said. "Just jumped in my truck and that was us, we were down here.
"It's about our tamariki, our language, our culture."
She said despite the cost of fuel to make the trip, it was worth it, regardless of whether any MPs came out to talk to crowd.
"It's the wairua that I'm here for basically, I feel the love here with all our people here, and all those from overseas, too.
"We're all united ... we'll let the people speak for themselves."
The hīkoi is scheduled to arrive at Parliament around midday.
