The Reasons Our Team Went Covert to Reveal Crime in the Kurdish-origin Population

A pair of Kurdish men consented to work covertly to uncover a network behind unlawful commercial enterprises because the lawbreakers are damaging the reputation 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 lawfully in the United Kingdom for a long time.

Investigators uncovered that a Kurdish-linked crime network was running mini-marts, barbershops and car washes across Britain, and wanted to learn more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Equipped with hidden cameras, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish-origin asylum seekers with no permission to work, looking to acquire and manage a convenience store from which to sell illegal cigarettes and vapes.

The investigators were able to reveal how easy it is for a person in these conditions to set up and manage a commercial operation on the High Street in public view. Those involved, we discovered, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the businesses in their identities, enabling to deceive the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also were able to discreetly record one of those at the core of the organization, who claimed that he could erase government fines of up to £60,000 imposed on those hiring illegal workers.

"Personally wanted to contribute in exposing these illegal practices [...] to loudly proclaim that they do not speak for Kurdish people," states one reporter, a former asylum seeker himself. Saman came to the UK illegally, having fled Kurdistan - a region that straddles the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a state - because his well-being was at danger.

The journalists admit that conflicts over illegal migration are high in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been worried that the investigation could inflame tensions.

But the other reporter says that the illegal employment "damages the whole Kurdish-origin community" and he believes obligated to "bring it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Additionally, the journalist explains he was concerned the coverage could be used by the radical right.

He states this especially affected him when he discovered that radical right campaigner Tommy Robinson's national unity protest was happening in the capital on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating secretly. Banners and banners could be spotted at the protest, reading "we want our nation back".

The reporters have both been observing online reaction to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish-origin community and say it has sparked intense anger for certain individuals. One Facebook comment they observed read: "How can we identify and track [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

One more urged their relatives in the Kurdish region to be slaughtered.

They have also read allegations that they were agents for the British government, and traitors to other Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no desire of hurting the Kurdish population," one reporter explains. "Our objective is to reveal those who have harmed its reputation. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and deeply troubled about the actions of such persons."

Most of those applying for refugee status claim they are fleeing politically motivated persecution, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a non-profit that helps refugees and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the case for our undercover journalist one investigator, who, when he initially came to the United Kingdom, faced difficulties for many years. He explains he had to live on less than £20 a week while his asylum claim was processed.

Refugee applicants now get about forty-nine pounds a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in housing which includes meals, according to Home Office guidance.

"Realistically saying, this isn't sufficient to support a acceptable lifestyle," says Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are mostly prohibited from working, he thinks numerous are vulnerable to being manipulated and are effectively "forced to labor in the black economy for as low as £3 per hourly rate".

A official for the government department stated: "The government make no apology for refusing to grant asylum seekers the authorization to work - doing so would establish an motivation for individuals to come to the United Kingdom illegally."

Refugee cases can take a long time to be decided with nearly a 33% requiring over a year, according to government statistics from the late March this year.

The reporter says working without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or convenience store would have been extremely simple to accomplish, but he explained to the team he would never have done that.

Nevertheless, he explains that those he met working in unauthorized convenience stores during his investigation seemed "disoriented", especially those whose refugee application has been refused and who were in the appeal stage.

"These individuals expended all their funds to migrate to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've sacrificed their entire investment."

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

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