When the hikoi meets the flagpole it's not the police who stand between the Government and the protesters - it's the Maori Wardens.
Senior warden Frances Mahanga and her colleagues have done the Waitangi Day beat for many years.
Tomorrow there will 40 wardens from Tai Tokerau and 52 "coming up from
down the line". Those extras come north every year from Waikato, Rotorua, Auckland and elsewhere.
"We couldn't do it on our own, it's too big a job," Mrs Mahanga said.
But do what?
Well, for a start, there's that flagpole stoush every year. Possibly, that's the most visible position Maori Wardens get into en mass at Waitangi, but hardly anyone seems to notice.
"They only see the police and the protesters," Mrs Mahanga said. "But if you were looking you would see that the wardens actually stand between those other two groups. We form a line in front of the police, and we try to settle down the protesters in the very front."
But the highly charged annual exhibition of dissent at the flagpole is only a small part of the Maori Wardens' duties.
"Our mahi [work] is to make sure of the safety of everyone. We keep the peace, calm things down, watch out for any trouble through alcohol, other stuff ... We just maintain a presence."
The wardens are the first to put up their big sleeping and dining tents in Te Tii Marae's large grounds and the last to take them down, days later.
Mrs Mahanga and her colleagues would dearly like to see more, younger, Maori join up as wardens. The positive influence, the support, the go-between factor with the law - there are immeasurable advantages to the community in having a strong Maori Warden culture.
As for some of the harder jobs - well, it doesn't get much harder than Waitangi as far as sheer hours and commitment.
"We all look forward to the Waitangi celebrations. Once upon a time it used to be a family day, then it became a day of protest and ordinary New Zealanders stopped coming. Now it's a family celebration again."
With up to 60,000 visitors expected this year, the wardens' calm, pleasant, watchful, vital presence is sure to be felt.
