Willie Jackson is grilled by media after Labour leader Andrew Little announced the broadcaster would be standing for Labour. Photo / John Stone
There are two sides to pre-Waitangi Day festivities in the Bay of Islands.
On one side there were boycotts, bans, politics and a swarm of media - while just over the fence punters enjoyed fried bread, massages, cold drinks and fun and entertainment.
Yesterday's pre-Waitangi Day events were a bit different than previous years - the usual huddle of cameramen and reporters were not allowed inside Te Tii Marae grounds but instead gathered on the road at the entrance.
There was no Prime Minister or National Party MPs and the Beehive was welcomed on as a collective rather than as separate political parties.
The biggest, although brief, disturbance of the day happened when Northland MP Winston Peters formed an unlikely alliance when he refused to enter the grounds of Te Tii Marae unless the media could come with him. The media had earlier been banned by the marae.
Marae security asked the police to order Mr Peters and his entourage to move off the grass in front of the gate.
Police held back and the MP refused to move until he had made his point. When Mr Peters eventually decided he'd had his say and walked off towards the bridge a cameraman called out, "Thanks for sticking up for us".
"Any time," said Mr Peters, laughing aloud at the sheer irony. "It must be a crisis if I'm sticking up for media."
The comments come after some TV crews were reportedly asked to pay $1200 to enter the marae or $10,000 for exclusive access rights.
It was not clear if those demands were made by anyone officially associated with the marae's organising committee.
However most media - certainly any with TV cameras - were kept outside on the main road along the waterfront.
Reporters were allowed inside if they stayed behind a rope cordon.
Earlier in the day, after announcing broadcaster Willie Jackson would stand for Labour at the election, leader Andrew Little said he would raise the media ban and consider his own boycott of the marae, but not Waitangi, next year.
"I cannot see that a continued media blackout is in any way consistent with the public role that I have, whether as leader of the opposition and if I ever have the privilege of leading a Government after September 23, and it would be wrong to be seen to be supporting and encouraging that."
This year, however, he was welcomed on to the marae with other Labour MPs, including Te Tai Tokerau MP Kelvin Davis, and the Green Party.
Despite all of this going on people who were only metres away from the action were oblivious to it.
On the grounds next to the marae, stalls were set up selling everything from T-shirts and dolls to fry bread and hangi.
Monty Rameka was visiting Waitangi from Tauranga for the first time and encouraged people to head to Waitangi to see it for themselves.