Why We Chose to Go Covert to Expose Crime in the Kurdish Community

A pair of Kurdish-background individuals decided to operate secretly to uncover a network behind unlawful High Street establishments because the wrongdoers are damaging the reputation of Kurds in the UK, they state.

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

The team found that a Kurdish crime network was operating mini-marts, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services throughout the United Kingdom, and wanted to learn more about how it functioned and who was participating.

Armed with secret recording devices, Ali and Saman presented themselves as Kurdish asylum seekers with no authorization to be employed, looking to acquire and manage a mini-mart from which to sell illegal cigarettes and vapes.

The investigators were successful to uncover how straightforward it is for an individual in these conditions to set up and run a commercial operation on the commercial area in full view. Those participating, we discovered, compensate Kurds who have UK residency to register the operations in their names, assisting to fool the officials.

Ali and Saman also succeeded to discreetly film one of those at the centre of the operation, who asserted that he could eliminate official sanctions of up to £60k encountered those using unauthorized employees.

"I sought to contribute in exposing these unlawful activities [...] to loudly proclaim that they don't represent us," says Saman, a former asylum seeker personally. Saman entered the country without authorization, having fled the Kurdish region - a region that spans the borders of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not internationally recognised as a nation - because his life was at threat.

The investigators acknowledge that conflicts over illegal immigration are significant in the United Kingdom and say they have both been worried that the probe could worsen conflicts.

But the other reporter says that the illegal working "negatively affects the whole Kurdish community" and he considers obligated to "reveal it [the criminal network] out into the open".

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

He states this especially struck him when he realized that extreme right campaigner a prominent activist's national unity march was occurring in London on one of the Saturdays and Sundays he was working covertly. Placards and banners could be seen at the gathering, displaying "we want our country back".

The reporters have both been monitoring online reaction to the inquiry from inside the Kurdish community and say it has generated strong frustration for certain individuals. One social media message they found read: "In what way can we identify and find [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

A different called for their families in Kurdistan to be harmed.

They have also read allegations that they were agents for the UK authorities, and betrayers to other Kurds. "Both of us are not spies, and we have no intention of hurting the Kurdish-origin population," one reporter explains. "Our goal is to expose those who have compromised its reputation. Both journalists are proud of our Kurdish-origin identity and deeply concerned about the actions of such people."

The majority of those seeking refugee status say they are fleeing political persecution, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a charity that helps refugees and asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.

This was the case for our covert reporter one investigator, who, when he first arrived to the United Kingdom, struggled for many years. He states he had to survive on under twenty pounds a per week while his refugee application was processed.

Asylum seekers now get approximately £49 a week - or nine pounds ninety-five if they are in accommodation which offers meals, according to official policies.

"Practically saying, this isn't sufficient to support a dignified lifestyle," explains the expert from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are largely prevented from working, he believes numerous are vulnerable to being manipulated and are effectively "forced to work in the unofficial sector for as little as three pounds per hourly rate".

A official for the authorities stated: "We make no apology for not granting asylum seekers the authorization to work - granting this would create an motivation for individuals to come to the United Kingdom without authorization."

Refugee applications can take years to be resolved with approximately a 33% requiring more than one year, according to government data from the spring this current year.

Saman states working without authorization in a car wash, barbershop or mini-mart would have been extremely easy to do, but he told us he would never have done that.

Nonetheless, he explains that those he interviewed employed in unauthorized mini-marts during his research seemed "disoriented", especially those whose refugee application has been refused and who were in the appeals process.

"They spent all their savings to migrate to the UK, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've sacrificed everything."

Ali agrees that these individuals seemed in dire straits.

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