Why We Chose to Go Covert to Reveal Crime in the Kurdish-origin Population

A pair of Kurdish men decided to go undercover to reveal a organization behind unlawful High Street businesses because the wrongdoers are damaging the standing of Kurdish people in the United Kingdom, they say.

The two, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish-origin investigators who have both lived legally in the UK for a long time.

The team found that a Kurdish crime network was managing mini-marts, barbershops and car washes the length of Britain, and aimed to discover more about how it functioned and who was taking part.

Equipped with covert recording devices, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish refugee applicants with no permission to work, seeking to acquire and manage a mini-mart from which to distribute illegal tobacco products and vapes.

They were able to discover how straightforward it is for a person in these circumstances to set up and run a business on the main street in public view. Those participating, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the enterprises in their identities, assisting to deceive the officials.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly document one of those at the heart of the operation, who asserted that he could remove government fines of up to £60k imposed on those employing unauthorized employees.

"Personally sought to play a role in uncovering these unlawful operations [...] to declare that they don't speak for us," states one reporter, a former asylum seeker himself. The reporter entered the country without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that spans the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not globally acknowledged as a country - because his life was at threat.

The reporters admit that disagreements over illegal immigration are high in the UK and say they have both been concerned that the probe could intensify hostilities.

But the other reporter explains that the illegal employment "damages the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he believes obligated to "bring it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Additionally, Ali says he was concerned the reporting could be exploited by the extreme right.

He says this notably impressed him when he noticed that radical right campaigner a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom rally was occurring in London on one of the weekends he was operating secretly. Signs and banners could be seen at the gathering, displaying "we want our country returned".

The reporters have both been tracking online feedback to the exposé from inside the Kurdish-origin population and report it has generated strong frustration for some. One social media comment they spotted read: "How can we locate and locate [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

A different demanded their families in Kurdistan to be attacked.

They have also encountered claims that they were agents for the UK authorities, and traitors to fellow Kurds. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no aim of harming the Kurdish population," Saman explains. "Our goal is to uncover those who have damaged its reputation. We are proud of our Kurdish identity and profoundly concerned about the activities of such persons."

Most of those seeking asylum say they are fleeing political discrimination, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a charity that helps refugees and refugee applicants in the United Kingdom.

This was the scenario for our covert reporter Saman, who, when he first arrived to the UK, faced difficulties for years. He states he had to survive on less than twenty pounds a week while his asylum claim was considered.

Asylum seekers now receive approximately £49 a week - or £9.95 if they are in housing which provides food, according to Home Office guidance.

"Realistically stating, this is not adequate to sustain a respectable life," states the expert from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are generally prohibited from employment, he feels a significant number are open to being manipulated and are essentially "compelled to labor in the unofficial sector for as low as £3 per hour".

A representative for the Home Office stated: "The government make no apology for denying refugee applicants the permission to be employed - doing so would create an motivation for individuals to travel to the UK illegally."

Refugee cases can require years to be decided with nearly a third taking more than 12 months, according to official statistics from the late March this year.

The reporter says being employed without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, hair salon or convenience store would have been quite easy to do, but he informed us he would not have done that.

Nonetheless, he explains that those he interviewed laboring in illegal convenience stores during his research seemed "confused", notably those whose refugee application has been rejected and who were in the legal challenge.

"These individuals expended their entire funds to come to the UK, they had their refugee application refused and now they've forfeited everything."

The other reporter agrees that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"When [they] state you're forbidden to work - but simultaneously [you]