‘Soevereinen zijn zeer betrokken bij de maatschappij en vinden juist dat de overheid het sociaal contract heeft verbroken’

Thousands of individuals in the Netherlands reject the legitimacy of the government, operating as so-called "soevereinen" (sovereigns) who refuse to pay taxes or carry a driver's license. Researchers recently conducted interviews with twelve of these individuals to understand their perspectives.

According to the findings, these sovereigns view themselves as deeply engaged with society rather than detached from it. Their primary grievance is that they believe the government has broken the social contract, leading to their stance against state authority.