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

Two Kurdish men agreed to operate secretly to reveal a organization behind unlawful High Street businesses because the criminals are damaging the reputation of Kurds in the UK, they state.

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

Investigators uncovered that a Kurdish-linked criminal operation was operating mini-marts, barbershops and car washes throughout the United Kingdom, and sought to learn more about how it operated and who was taking part.

Armed with covert cameras, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish asylum seekers with no permission to be employed, attempting to acquire and operate a mini-mart from which to sell unlawful cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

They were able to discover how simple it is for someone in these situations to establish and operate a enterprise on the commercial area in public view. The individuals participating, we found, pay Kurds who have UK residency to legally establish the operations in their identities, helping to mislead the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly record one of those at the heart of the organization, who claimed that he could eliminate official fines of up to sixty thousand pounds faced those employing unauthorized laborers.

"Personally aimed to play a role in exposing these unlawful activities [...] to loudly proclaim that they don't represent us," says one reporter, a former refugee applicant personally. The reporter came to the country without authorization, having escaped from the Kurdish region - a territory that straddles the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not officially recognized as a nation - because his well-being was at threat.

The reporters acknowledge that tensions over unauthorized migration are significant in the United Kingdom and say they have both been worried that the probe could intensify conflicts.

But the other reporter states that the illegal labor "damages the whole Kurdish community" and he feels compelled to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Furthermore, the journalist explains he was worried the coverage could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He says this notably impressed him when he noticed that extreme right activist Tommy Robinson's national unity protest was happening in the capital on one of the weekends he was working undercover. Banners and flags could be seen at the rally, showing "we want our country returned".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring online response to the exposé from inside the Kurdish-origin community and say it has generated strong frustration for some. One Facebook message they observed said: "In what way can we identify and locate [the undercover reporters] to attack them like animals!"

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

They have also seen allegations that they were informants for the UK authorities, and traitors to fellow Kurds. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no intention of harming the Kurdish community," one reporter says. "Our aim is to uncover those who have harmed its standing. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin identity and extremely worried about the activities of such persons."

Most of those applying for refugee status state they are escaping political persecution, according to an expert from the a refugee support organization, a charity that assists refugees and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the scenario for our covert journalist Saman, who, when he first arrived to the United Kingdom, struggled for many years. He explains he had to live on under £20 a per week while his asylum claim was processed.

Refugee applicants now get about forty-nine pounds a per week - or £9.95 if they are in shelter which includes food, according to Home Office guidance.

"Honestly saying, this isn't adequate to sustain a dignified life," states the expert from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are generally prevented from employment, he thinks numerous are open to being taken advantage of and are practically "compelled to labor in the unofficial economy for as little as £3 per hour".

A spokesperson for the Home Office stated: "The government are unapologetic for refusing to grant asylum seekers the right to work - granting this would create an reason for people to travel to the UK without authorization."

Refugee cases can take multiple years to be processed with approximately a one-third taking over one year, according to government figures from the late March this current year.

Saman explains working without authorization in a car wash, hair salon or convenience store would have been extremely simple to achieve, but he told us he would not have done that.

However, he explains that those he met employed in illegal convenience stores during his work seemed "lost", particularly those whose asylum claim has been denied and who were in the appeal stage.

"These individuals spent all of their savings to travel to the UK, they had their asylum denied and now they've lost their entire investment."

The other reporter acknowledges that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"If [they] declare you're not allowed to be employed - but simultaneously [you]