The Reasons We Chose to Go Undercover to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Population

A pair of Kurdish-background men agreed to go undercover to uncover a operation behind illegal High Street businesses because the wrongdoers are negatively affecting the standing of Kurds in the United Kingdom, they explain.

The two, who we are referring to as Saman and Ali, are Kurdish-origin investigators who have both resided lawfully in the UK for many years.

Investigators found that a Kurdish-linked illegal enterprise was running small shops, barbershops and car washes throughout the UK, and wanted to find out more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Armed with covert recording devices, Saman and Ali posed as Kurdish-origin asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, attempting to buy and manage a convenience store from which to distribute unlawful cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

They were successful to reveal how straightforward it is for a person in these conditions to start and manage a enterprise on the main street in plain sight. Those involved, we found, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to legally establish the businesses in their names, assisting to mislead the authorities.

Saman and Ali also were able to covertly document one of those at the centre of the network, who stated that he could erase government fines of up to sixty thousand pounds imposed on those using unauthorized workers.

"Personally aimed to contribute in exposing these illegal practices [...] to declare that they don't characterize Kurdish people," explains one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. Saman entered the UK without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a territory that covers the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a state - because his safety was at danger.

The journalists admit that conflicts over unauthorized migration are elevated in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been worried that the inquiry could intensify conflicts.

But Ali states that the illegal employment "harms the whole Kurdish population" and he believes compelled to "expose it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Furthermore, the journalist mentions he was anxious the reporting could be seized upon by the radical right.

He explains this particularly affected him when he discovered that far-right campaigner Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in London on one of the weekends he was operating covertly. Signs and flags could be seen at the rally, reading "we demand our nation back".

The reporters have both been tracking social media feedback to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish-origin population and report it has sparked intense anger for some. One social media post they found stated: "In what way can we locate and locate [the undercover reporters] to kill them like animals!"

One more demanded their families in Kurdistan to be attacked.

They have also encountered claims that they were agents for the UK authorities, and traitors to other Kurds. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no desire of harming the Kurdish population," Saman says. "Our objective is to reveal those who have damaged its image. We are proud of our Kurdish heritage and extremely troubled about the activities of such persons."

The majority of those applying for refugee status claim they are fleeing politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a charitable organization, a charity that helps asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the case for our covert journalist one investigator, who, when he initially came to the United Kingdom, experienced challenges for many years. He says he had to survive on less than £20 a per week while his refugee application was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now are provided approximately £49 a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in housing which provides meals, according to Home Office regulations.

"Practically stating, this isn't adequate to maintain a respectable lifestyle," explains the expert from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are largely prevented from employment, he believes numerous are open to being exploited and are effectively "forced to labor in the unofficial sector for as low as three pounds per hour".

A spokesperson for the government department said: "The government make no apology for denying refugee applicants the right to be employed - granting this would generate an incentive for people to travel to the UK illegally."

Asylum applications can require years to be decided with approximately a 33% taking over one year, according to government data from the end of March this current year.

Saman states working without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, hair salon or mini-mart would have been quite straightforward to achieve, but he informed the team he would never have participated in that.

Nonetheless, he explains that those he met laboring in illegal convenience stores during his investigation seemed "lost", especially those whose asylum claim has been rejected and who were in the appeal stage.

"These individuals expended all of their money to come to the UK, they had their asylum denied and now they've sacrificed all they had."

Ali concurs that these people seemed hopeless.

"When [they] declare you're not allowed to work - but also [you]