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News | 09-04-2024 | 16:47
People who claim to be sovereigns distance themselves from governments and other institutions. Although they tend to be open to others, they do spread factually inaccurate stories about institutions’ nefarious intentions. In the long run, such behavior undermines democratic rule of law. Some sovereign citizens want to decide for themselves whether laws and regulations apply to them.
A small number of sovereign citizen movements also pose a threat of violence in the short term. These are the main conclusions drawn from the analysis of the phenomenon Giving Back to the Community Statement by the National Coordinator for Counter-Terrorism and Security (NCTV), the General Directorate for Intelligence and Security (AIVD) and the National Police on the Sovereign Citizen Movement in the Netherlands.
Diversified sports
Those who claim to be sovereigns more or less believe in the existence of an “evil elite”, which they believe exists not only in the legislative, judicial and executive branches, but also in the media and the scientific community.
The phenomenon analysis divides the behaviors in the sovereign citizen movement into three categories. The largest group wants to live as independently as possible, but does not see themselves as completely separated from society. The second group believes that Dutch laws and regulations are ineffective. For example, they refuse to fulfill financial obligations such as taxes and fines. A small group wants to resist the current system in a violent way as a last resort.
The sovereign citizen movement is not yet large enough to pose an existential threat to democratic rule of law, but there are concerns about its continued growth and the existing breeding grounds for its ideas.
Threats of violence
While sovereign independence activists in the Netherlands have been mostly refraining from violence, there has been a recent increase in intimidation and threats against local politicians, officials, judges, journalists and scientists, among others, as well as some minor violent clashes with police and bailiffs.
The number of violent incidents is expected to increase as some of the self-proclaimed sovereigns find themselves increasingly vulnerable to getting into trouble, for example, by not paying their bills. By spreading an image of an enemy that is an evil elite committed to oppression, enslavement, and even murder, some of the self-proclaimed sovereigns may conclude that violent resistance is necessary.
To some in this small group of dozens to hundreds of people, these messages may be just grandstanding or threats. To others, however, these messages may legitimize violence, such as in response to traffic stops, arrests, bailiffs at homes, or evictions. Some in this self-proclaimed sovereign group even organized themselves to prepare online and physically to defend themselves in an expected violent struggle with the government and institutions. They believed that the evil elites would initiate a violent struggle and that they must be prepared. Guns and other weapons were found in the homes of several supporters.
Dealing with claimants
In response to this analysis, the Minister of Justice and Security and the Minister of Interior and Kingdom Relations sent a letter to the House of Representatives to discuss how sovereign citizens should be treated.
The most pressing issue expressed in the phenomenon analysis is to protect our democracy and the rule of law and prevent vulnerable groups and their children from becoming victims. The government pursues three goals in this regard. First, to enforce the law and combat violent extremism. There are already A people-centered approach. People-centered approaches should be further developed for sovereign citizens holding extremist views.
Municipalities act where necessary together with relevant partners in the security and social sectors. This spring, the Minister of Justice and Security, together with the Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations and the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment, will present a counter-extremism strategy to address all forms of extremism, including anti-institutional extremism and sovereign citizenship.
The second goal is to prevent people from taking further actions that undermine democracy. This can be done by limiting the influence of demagogues, identifying and condemning actions that undermine democracy, and strengthening the resilience of institutions.
Finally, we work to ensure that the movement does not expand. To do this, it is important to engage people against anti-democratic rhetoric and to stay connected to it. This requires a lot of effort not only from professionals in local government, but also from professionals in the fields of youth work and education, as well as from bailiffs or community police. It is important to continue discussing criticism and mistrust, to be honest in difficult situations, and to refute misinformation and disinformation.
The Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations will set out in detail in a parliamentary letter this spring how to respond to wider anti-establishment trends and how to strengthen ties between society and government.
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