The Reasons We Chose to Go Undercover to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Population

Two Kurdish-background individuals consented to work covertly to expose a organization behind unlawful High Street businesses because the wrongdoers are negatively affecting the standing of Kurdish people in the United Kingdom, they say.

The two, who we are calling Saman and Ali, are Kurdish-origin reporters who have both lived lawfully in the UK for years.

The team discovered that a Kurdish-linked illegal enterprise was managing mini-marts, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services the length of the UK, and aimed to discover more about how it functioned and who was involved.

Prepared with hidden recording devices, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish-origin asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, looking to buy and run a convenience store from which to trade illegal cigarettes and vapes.

They were able to discover how straightforward it is for someone in these circumstances to establish and operate a commercial operation on the main street in plain sight. Those involved, we discovered, pay Kurdish individuals who have British citizenship to legally establish the operations in their names, enabling to mislead the officials.

Saman and Ali also were able to secretly document one of those at the centre of the network, who stated that he could eliminate official penalties of up to sixty thousand pounds imposed on those hiring unauthorized workers.

"Personally aimed to contribute in exposing these illegal operations [...] to declare that they do not represent Kurdish people," says one reporter, a former asylum seeker personally. Saman came to the UK illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a territory that spans the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not officially recognized as a country - because his life was at risk.

The reporters acknowledge that conflicts over unauthorized immigration are elevated in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been worried that the investigation could inflame tensions.

But Ali says that the unauthorized employment "harms the entire Kurdish community" and he considers compelled to "expose it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, Ali says he was concerned the coverage could be used by the radical right.

He states this especially struck him when he discovered that radical right campaigner a prominent activist's Unite the Kingdom rally was taking place in the capital on one of the weekends he was working covertly. Signs and flags could be spotted at the gathering, displaying "we demand our nation back".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring social media reaction to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish-origin population and report it has sparked strong outrage for some. One Facebook comment they observed stated: "How can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to harm them like dogs!"

Another called for their families in Kurdistan to be attacked.

They have also read accusations that they were spies for the UK government, and traitors to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no intention of harming the Kurdish-origin population," one reporter states. "Our goal is to expose those who have compromised its image. We are honored of our Kurdish heritage and deeply worried about the activities of such people."

Most of those applying for asylum claim they are escaping politically motivated discrimination, according to an expert from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a charity that assists asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the United Kingdom.

This was the scenario for our undercover journalist one investigator, who, when he first came to the UK, faced difficulties for years. He explains he had to survive on less than £20 a week while his asylum claim was considered.

Asylum seekers now receive about £49 a per week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which provides food, according to Home Office policies.

"Practically speaking, this isn't adequate to support a dignified life," explains the expert from the the organization.

Because refugee applicants are mostly prohibited from working, he thinks a significant number are susceptible to being manipulated and are essentially "compelled to labor in the black economy for as little as £3 per hourly rate".

A spokesperson for the government department said: "The government are unapologetic for denying refugee applicants the right to be employed - doing so would create an reason for individuals to come to the UK without authorization."

Asylum applications can take multiple years to be decided with almost a one-third taking over 12 months, according to government data from the late March this year.

Saman explains being employed illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or convenience store would have been quite straightforward to do, but he told the team he would never have participated in that.

However, he explains that those he met laboring in unauthorized convenience stores during his research seemed "disoriented", especially those whose asylum claim has been refused and who were in the appeals process.

"They expended all their funds to migrate to the United Kingdom, they had their asylum refused and now they've lost their entire investment."

The other reporter concurs that these people seemed hopeless.

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