Why We Went Covert to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Community

A pair of Kurdish-background men agreed to operate secretly to uncover a network behind unlawful commercial establishments because the lawbreakers are negatively affecting the standing of Kurdish people in the UK, they explain.

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

Investigators found that a Kurdish illegal enterprise was operating small shops, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services the length of Britain, and wanted to discover more about how it worked and who was taking part.

Equipped with secret recording devices, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish-origin refugee applicants with no right to be employed, looking to purchase and operate a small shop from which to trade illegal tobacco products and electronic cigarettes.

The investigators were successful to uncover how simple it is for an individual in these situations to set up and run a enterprise on the High Street in full view. The individuals involved, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have British citizenship to register the businesses in their identities, assisting to fool the government agencies.

Saman and Ali also managed to discreetly film one of those at the core of the operation, who asserted that he could erase government fines of up to sixty thousand pounds faced those employing unauthorized laborers.

"I aimed to contribute in uncovering these unlawful activities [...] to loudly proclaim that they do not characterize Kurdish people," explains Saman, a ex- refugee applicant himself. Saman entered the country without authorization, having fled Kurdistan - a region that straddles the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not internationally recognised as a nation - because his life was at risk.

The journalists admit that conflicts over illegal immigration are significant in the UK and state they have both been concerned that the investigation could inflame tensions.

But the other reporter explains that the unauthorized employment "damages the whole Kurdish-origin population" and he feels driven to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Separately, Ali explains he was anxious the reporting could be used by the extreme right.

He says this especially struck him when he noticed that extreme right campaigner Tommy Robinson's national unity rally was taking place in the capital on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating covertly. Signs and flags could be seen at the gathering, displaying "we demand our nation back".

Both journalists have both been monitoring social media reaction to the exposé from within the Kurdish-origin community and report it has sparked strong outrage for some. One Facebook message they observed read: "How can we locate and locate [the undercover reporters] to attack them like animals!"

A different demanded their relatives in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also read claims that they were spies for the UK government, and traitors to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no desire of hurting the Kurdish-origin community," one reporter says. "Our goal is to reveal those who have compromised its standing. Both journalists are honored of our Kurdish identity and deeply worried about the activities of such individuals."

The majority of those seeking asylum claim they are fleeing politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a charitable organization, a non-profit that assists asylum seekers and asylum seekers in the UK.

This was the case for our covert journalist one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the United Kingdom, experienced challenges for years. He states he had to survive on less than twenty pounds a week while his refugee application was processed.

Refugee applicants now receive approximately forty-nine pounds a week - or £9.95 if they are in shelter which includes meals, according to government guidance.

"Practically saying, this isn't enough to sustain a respectable lifestyle," says the expert from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are mostly prevented from working, he thinks numerous are open to being taken advantage of and are effectively "forced to labor in the illegal economy for as low as £3 per hourly rate".

A spokesperson for the Home Office stated: "We do not apologize for refusing to grant asylum seekers the right to be employed - doing so would establish an incentive for people to migrate to the United Kingdom illegally."

Refugee cases can require multiple years to be resolved with nearly a 33% taking more than 12 months, according to government statistics from the spring this current year.

Saman states being employed illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, hair salon or mini-mart would have been quite simple to do, but he told the team he would never have engaged in that.

Nonetheless, he states that those he met laboring in illegal mini-marts during his investigation seemed "disoriented", notably those whose asylum claim has been rejected and who were in the legal challenge.

"These individuals spent all their money to come to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've forfeited their entire investment."

The other reporter agrees that these people seemed desperate.

"If [they] say you're forbidden to be employed - but also [you]