Why We Chose to Go Covert to Uncover Crime in the Kurdish Community

A pair of Kurdish-background men agreed to go undercover to expose a operation behind unlawful main street establishments because the criminals are causing harm the image of Kurdish people in the UK, they explain.

The two, who we are referring to as Saman and Ali, are Kurdish-origin journalists who have both resided legally in the United Kingdom for years.

Investigators discovered that a Kurdish-linked crime network was managing mini-marts, hair salons and car washes throughout the United Kingdom, and wanted to learn more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Armed with secret cameras, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish asylum seekers with no permission to work, attempting to purchase and operate a small shop from which to distribute illegal tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.

The investigators were successful to uncover how easy it is for someone in these situations to set up and run a business on the High Street in plain sight. Those participating, we discovered, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to register the businesses in their names, helping to mislead the government agencies.

Saman and Ali also managed to discreetly film one of those at the heart of the network, who stated that he could remove official penalties of up to sixty thousand pounds faced those hiring illegal employees.

"Personally sought to contribute in revealing these unlawful activities [...] to loudly proclaim that they don't represent us," says one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. The reporter entered the country illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that straddles the borders of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a state - because his life was at threat.

The reporters recognize that disagreements over illegal migration are high in the UK and say they have both been worried that the inquiry could inflame hostilities.

But Ali states that the illegal employment "harms the whole Kurdish-origin population" and he considers obligated to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Additionally, the journalist says he was anxious the coverage could be exploited by the extreme right.

He states this notably struck him when he realized that extreme right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in London on one of the weekends he was operating undercover. Signs and flags could be seen at the rally, reading "we want our nation returned".

The reporters have both been tracking online reaction to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish population and say it has caused significant anger for certain individuals. One social media post they spotted stated: "In what way can we find and find [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

A different called for their families in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also encountered allegations that they were agents for the UK government, and traitors to other Kurdish people. "We are not informants, and we have no aim of harming the Kurdish-origin population," one reporter explains. "Our aim is to uncover those who have damaged its image. We are proud of our Kurdish identity and deeply concerned about the behavior of such people."

Most of those seeking asylum state they are fleeing politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a charity that supports asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the situation for our undercover reporter Saman, who, when he first arrived to the UK, faced difficulties for years. He explains he had to live on less than £20 a week while his asylum claim was reviewed.

Asylum seekers now receive about £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which offers food, according to government guidance.

"Practically stating, this is not adequate to support a respectable lifestyle," explains the expert from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are generally prohibited from employment, he believes numerous are vulnerable to being manipulated and are effectively "compelled to work in the black market for as low as three pounds per hourly rate".

A official for the Home Office stated: "We make no apology for not granting asylum seekers the right to work - doing so would create an reason for individuals to migrate to the UK illegally."

Refugee applications can require years to be decided with approximately a one-third requiring more than one year, according to official statistics from the late March this year.

Saman states being employed illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or convenience store would have been quite simple to do, but he told the team he would not have engaged in that.

However, he says that those he encountered working in unauthorized mini-marts during his research seemed "confused", notably those whose refugee application has been rejected and who were in the legal challenge.

"They used their entire savings to come to the UK, they had their asylum denied and now they've forfeited their entire investment."

The other reporter concurs that these individuals seemed hopeless.

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