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

A pair of Kurdish individuals decided to go undercover to uncover a network behind illegal main street enterprises because the lawbreakers are causing harm the image of Kurds in the United Kingdom, they say.

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

Investigators uncovered that a Kurdish criminal operation was managing mini-marts, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services across Britain, and aimed to learn more about how it worked and who was involved.

Armed with hidden cameras, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish-origin refugee applicants with no authorization to be employed, attempting to acquire and run a small shop from which to distribute illegal cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

The investigators were successful to discover how simple it is for a person in these situations to establish and manage a enterprise on the High Street in plain sight. The individuals participating, we discovered, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK residency to legally establish the operations in their identities, enabling to fool the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also were able to discreetly document one of those at the heart of the operation, who asserted that he could eliminate government sanctions of up to sixty thousand pounds encountered those using unauthorized laborers.

"I aimed to contribute in exposing these illegal practices [...] to declare that they don't speak for us," explains Saman, a ex- asylum seeker himself. Saman came to the United Kingdom without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a area that straddles the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a nation - because his well-being was at risk.

The investigators admit that conflicts over unauthorized immigration are elevated in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been anxious that the investigation could intensify hostilities.

But the other reporter states that the unauthorized employment "harms the entire Kurdish community" and he feels compelled to "bring it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Furthermore, the journalist says he was anxious the coverage could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He says this particularly impressed him when he noticed that far-right campaigner Tommy Robinson's Unite the Kingdom rally was occurring in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating undercover. Placards and flags could be spotted at the protest, reading "we demand our nation returned".

Saman and Ali have both been observing online reaction to the investigation from within the Kurdish population and explain it has caused strong anger for some. One Facebook comment they found said: "How can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to kill them like animals!"

Another demanded their relatives in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also read accusations that they were spies for the UK government, and betrayers to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no intention of harming the Kurdish community," Saman says. "Our objective is to reveal those who have damaged its image. Both journalists are honored of our Kurdish heritage and extremely troubled about the behavior of such persons."

Most of those seeking asylum state they are escaping political oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a non-profit that supports asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the United Kingdom.

This was the situation for our undercover journalist Saman, who, when he first arrived to the UK, faced difficulties for many years. He explains he had to survive on less than twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was considered.

Refugee applicants now get approximately £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in housing which provides food, according to official guidance.

"Practically saying, this is not adequate to sustain a respectable lifestyle," states the expert from the the organization.

Because asylum seekers are generally restricted from working, he thinks many are open to being exploited and are effectively "forced to work in the unofficial economy for as low as three pounds per hourly rate".

A representative for the Home Office said: "We do not apologize for not granting asylum seekers the authorization to work - doing so would generate an reason for individuals to come to the UK illegally."

Refugee applications can require a long time to be resolved with nearly a 33% taking over one year, according to government data from the end of March this year.

The reporter says working illegally in a car wash, hair salon or mini-mart would have been very simple to do, but he informed us he would not have done that.

Nonetheless, he explains that those he interviewed laboring in unauthorized mini-marts during his investigation seemed "lost", notably those whose refugee application has been denied and who were in the appeal stage.

"These individuals used all of their savings to travel to the UK, they had their refugee application denied and now they've lost everything."

Ali acknowledges that these individuals seemed in dire straits.

"When [they] declare you're prohibited to work - but also [you]