Why We Went Covert to Uncover Crime in the Kurdish Population

A pair of Kurdish men agreed to operate secretly to uncover a organization behind unlawful High Street enterprises because the lawbreakers are causing harm the standing of Kurds in the UK, they explain.

The pair, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish journalists who have both lived lawfully in the United Kingdom for many years.

The team discovered that a Kurdish criminal operation was running mini-marts, barbershops and car washes throughout the UK, and wanted to find out more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Equipped with secret recording devices, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to work, looking to purchase and run a mini-mart from which to sell illegal tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.

They were successful to reveal how easy it is for a person in these circumstances to set up and manage a commercial operation on the High Street in plain sight. The individuals involved, we found, compensate Kurds who have UK citizenship to legally establish the enterprises in their identities, assisting to mislead the authorities.

Saman and Ali also were able to discreetly film one of those at the core of the organization, who asserted that he could eliminate government fines of up to sixty thousand pounds imposed on those employing illegal employees.

"I aimed to contribute in uncovering these illegal activities [...] to say that they don't characterize us," states one reporter, a former refugee applicant himself. The reporter came to the country without authorization, having escaped from Kurdistan - a territory that spans the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a country - because his safety was at risk.

The investigators recognize that tensions over illegal immigration are significant in the UK and state they have both been concerned that the probe could worsen tensions.

But Ali states that the illegal working "damages the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he feels driven to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Additionally, Ali says he was worried the coverage could be exploited by the extreme right.

He explains this particularly impressed him when he noticed that far-right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march was occurring in London on one of the weekends he was working secretly. Signs and flags could be observed at the gathering, reading "we want our nation returned".

The reporters have both been observing social media feedback to the investigation from within the Kurdish population and explain it has sparked significant anger for some. One Facebook post they observed stated: "How can we locate and find [the undercover reporters] to harm them like dogs!"

One more urged their families in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also seen claims that they were informants for the British government, and traitors to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no intention of hurting the Kurdish-origin community," Saman says. "Our aim is to reveal those who have damaged its standing. We are honored of our Kurdish-origin identity and profoundly troubled about the behavior of such people."

Most of those seeking refugee status say they are escaping political discrimination, according to an expert from the a charitable organization, a organization that assists asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

This was the situation for our undercover journalist one investigator, who, when he first came to the United Kingdom, struggled for many years. He explains he had to live on less than £20 a per week while his asylum claim was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now are provided about £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in housing which provides food, according to government regulations.

"Honestly stating, this isn't enough to maintain a acceptable life," explains the expert from the the organization.

Because asylum seekers are largely restricted from employment, he thinks numerous are susceptible to being manipulated and are practically "compelled to work in the illegal economy for as little as three pounds per hour".

A spokesperson for the authorities commented: "We make no apology for not granting refugee applicants the authorization to work - doing so would establish an incentive for individuals to travel to the United Kingdom illegally."

Asylum applications can take multiple years to be resolved with approximately a one-third taking over a year, according to official figures from the spring this year.

Saman says working without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or mini-mart would have been extremely easy to accomplish, but he explained to us he would never have engaged in that.

Nonetheless, he explains that those he interviewed employed in unauthorized convenience stores during his research seemed "lost", notably those whose refugee application has been refused and who were in the legal challenge.

"They expended all their savings to come to the UK, they had their refugee application refused and now they've forfeited everything."

The other reporter concurs that these people seemed in dire straits.

"When [they] declare you're forbidden to be employed - but simultaneously [you]