Why We Chose to Go Covert to Expose Criminal Activity in the Kurdish-origin Population

A pair of Kurdish-background men agreed to go undercover to uncover a operation behind unlawful High Street businesses because the lawbreakers are causing harm the reputation of Kurdish people in the United Kingdom, they say.

The two, who we are calling Ali and Saman, are Kurdish investigators who have both resided legally in the United Kingdom for a long time.

The team discovered that a Kurdish-linked illegal enterprise was managing convenience stores, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services the length of the United Kingdom, and sought to find out more about how it worked and who was participating.

Prepared with covert cameras, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish-origin asylum seekers with no permission to be employed, looking to acquire and manage a small shop from which to sell illegal cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

The investigators were able to reveal how easy it is for someone in these conditions to set up and operate a enterprise on the main street in plain sight. The individuals involved, we learned, pay Kurds who have UK citizenship to register the operations in their names, helping to fool the officials.

Ali and Saman also were able to secretly film one of those at the heart of the operation, who stated that he could eliminate official penalties of up to £60k imposed on those hiring illegal laborers.

"Personally wanted to contribute in uncovering these unlawful practices [...] to declare that they don't represent us," states Saman, a former asylum seeker himself. Saman entered the country without authorization, having escaped from Kurdistan - a territory that spans the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not globally acknowledged as a state - because his safety was at threat.

The investigators acknowledge that tensions over unauthorized migration are significant in the United Kingdom and explain they have both been anxious that the investigation could worsen conflicts.

But Ali says that the unauthorized working "harms the whole Kurdish-origin community" and he believes obligated to "bring it [the criminal network] out into broad daylight".

Separately, Ali mentions he was worried the reporting could be seized upon by the far-right.

He says this notably impressed him when he noticed that far-right activist a prominent activist's national unity rally was happening in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was operating secretly. Banners and banners could be observed at the protest, reading "we demand our country returned".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring online reaction to the inquiry from within the Kurdish population and report it has sparked significant frustration for some. One Facebook post they found read: "How can we identify and locate [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

Another called for their families in Kurdistan to be slaughtered.

They have also read accusations that they were agents for the UK government, and betrayers to fellow Kurdish people. "Both of us are not informants, and we have no desire of damaging the Kurdish population," one reporter states. "Our goal is to reveal those who have harmed its image. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish identity and deeply worried about the behavior of such individuals."

The majority of those seeking asylum state they are escaping politically motivated oppression, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the Refugee Workers Cultural Association, a organization that helps refugees and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the situation for our covert reporter one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the United Kingdom, experienced challenges for many years. He says he had to live on under £20 a week while his refugee application was considered.

Refugee applicants now receive approximately forty-nine pounds a per week - or £9.95 if they are in accommodation which includes meals, according to government guidance.

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

Because refugee applicants are generally prohibited from working, he thinks numerous are susceptible to being exploited and are practically "forced to labor in the unofficial sector for as low as three pounds per hourly rate".

A spokesperson for the government department commented: "We are unapologetic for refusing to grant asylum seekers the authorization to be employed - granting this would establish an motivation for individuals to come to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Refugee applications can take years to be processed with nearly a one-third requiring over one year, according to government statistics from the end of March this year.

The reporter says working illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, hair salon or mini-mart would have been extremely straightforward to do, but he explained to us he would not have participated in that.

However, he explains that those he met employed in illegal mini-marts during his investigation seemed "lost", especially those whose asylum claim has been rejected and who were in the legal challenge.

"These individuals used all their savings to migrate to the United Kingdom, they had their refugee application denied and now they've sacrificed their entire investment."

Ali agrees that these people seemed hopeless.

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