Why We Went Covert to Expose Crime in the Kurdish Population

A pair of Kurdish individuals decided to operate secretly to reveal a operation behind illegal commercial enterprises because the criminals are negatively affecting the standing of Kurdish people in the Britain, they say.

The pair, who we are referring to as Ali and Saman, are Kurdish-origin reporters who have both resided lawfully in the United Kingdom for many years.

The team found that a Kurdish illegal enterprise was managing convenience stores, barbershops and car washes the length of the UK, and sought to learn more about how it worked and who was participating.

Armed with secret recording devices, Saman and Ali posed as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to work, looking to purchase and manage a convenience store from which to trade illegal tobacco products and vapes.

The investigators were successful to discover how easy it is for an individual in these situations to establish and run a business on the main street in public view. The individuals involved, we learned, compensate Kurds who have British citizenship to legally establish the operations in their identities, helping to mislead the authorities.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly record one of those at the core of the operation, who stated that he could eliminate official sanctions of up to £60k faced those employing unauthorized laborers.

"Personally wanted to play a role in revealing these illegal activities [...] to declare that they don't represent Kurdish people," explains one reporter, a ex- asylum seeker himself. The reporter came to the country illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that spans the boundaries of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not officially recognized as a state - because his safety was at threat.

The investigators acknowledge that conflicts over illegal migration are high in the United Kingdom and state they have both been anxious that the inquiry could inflame conflicts.

But Ali states that the unauthorized employment "negatively affects the whole Kurdish community" and he considers compelled to "expose it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Furthermore, Ali mentions he was anxious the coverage could be exploited by the extreme right.

He states this particularly affected him when he realized that radical right activist Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom march was happening in London on one of the weekends he was operating secretly. Banners and flags could be seen at the gathering, showing "we demand our nation returned".

The reporters have both been tracking online reaction to the investigation from within the Kurdish-origin population and explain it has sparked intense outrage for some. One Facebook message they found read: "In what way can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to harm them like animals!"

One more called for their families in the Kurdish region to be harmed.

They have also read allegations that they were spies for the UK government, and traitors to other Kurdish people. "We are not informants, and we have no desire of harming the Kurdish population," Saman says. "Our aim is to uncover those who have harmed its reputation. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and deeply troubled about the actions of such persons."

The majority of those applying for refugee status state they are fleeing politically motivated persecution, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a charity that supports asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the United Kingdom.

This was the situation for our undercover journalist Saman, who, when he initially came to the United Kingdom, experienced challenges for many years. He explains he had to live on less than twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was considered.

Asylum seekers now receive approximately £49 a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which includes meals, according to government guidance.

"Realistically saying, this isn't adequate to support a dignified existence," explains Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because refugee applicants are largely prohibited from working, he feels a significant number are open to being exploited and are practically "compelled to work in the unofficial economy for as little as £3 per hour".

A spokesperson for the authorities said: "The government are unapologetic for refusing to grant refugee applicants the right to be employed - granting this would establish an motivation for people to come to the UK illegally."

Refugee applications can take years to be processed with nearly a one-third requiring more than one year, according to official data from the late March this year.

Saman explains being employed without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or convenience store would have been extremely easy to do, but he explained to the team he would not have participated in that.

Nevertheless, he states that those he encountered working in illegal convenience stores during his investigation seemed "lost", especially those whose asylum claim has been rejected and who were in the appeal stage.

"They expended all their money to come to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application refused and now they've lost all they had."

Ali agrees that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"If [they] say you're prohibited to work - but simultaneously [you]