The Reasons Our Team Went Undercover to Uncover Criminal Activity in the Kurdish Community

Two Kurdish-background men decided to go undercover to reveal a organization behind unlawful main street enterprises because the lawbreakers are negatively affecting the image of Kurds in the Britain, they say.

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

The team discovered that a Kurdish crime network was operating mini-marts, barbershops and vehicle cleaning services throughout the UK, and aimed to find out more about how it functioned and who was participating.

Equipped with hidden recording devices, Saman and Ali presented themselves as Kurdish refugee applicants with no authorization to be employed, looking to buy and operate a convenience store from which to trade unlawful cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

They were successful to discover how simple it is for an individual in these conditions to start and run a commercial operation on the main street in public view. The individuals participating, we found, compensate Kurdish individuals who have UK citizenship to legally establish the businesses in their identities, assisting to mislead the government agencies.

Ali and Saman also managed to covertly film one of those at the core of the operation, who asserted that he could erase government penalties of up to sixty thousand pounds imposed on those employing unauthorized employees.

"I aimed to contribute in uncovering these illegal operations [...] to declare that they don't represent our community," explains one reporter, a ex- asylum seeker himself. Saman came to the UK illegally, having fled the Kurdish region - a region that spans the boundaries of multiple Middle Eastern countries but which is not officially recognized as a nation - because his life was at threat.

The journalists acknowledge that conflicts over illegal immigration are high in the UK and say they have both been concerned that the inquiry could intensify hostilities.

But the other reporter explains that the unauthorized labor "damages the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he believes obligated to "expose it [the criminal network] out into the open".

Furthermore, the journalist explains he was anxious the publication could be seized upon by the extreme right.

He says this particularly struck him when he realized that extreme right activist a prominent activist's national unity march was occurring in London on one of the weekends he was working secretly. Placards and banners could be observed at the protest, showing "we demand our nation returned".

Both journalists have both been observing online feedback to the exposé from inside the Kurdish population and explain it has caused strong anger for some. One social media comment they found said: "How can we find and track [the undercover reporters] to attack them like dogs!"

Another called for their families in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also seen allegations that they were informants for the British government, and traitors to fellow Kurds. "We are not spies, and we have no intention of harming the Kurdish population," Saman explains. "Our objective is to uncover those who have harmed its reputation. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin heritage and extremely troubled about the actions of such persons."

The majority of those applying for asylum state they are escaping political discrimination, according to Ibrahim Avicil from the a refugee support organization, a non-profit that assists asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the UK.

This was the scenario for our undercover journalist one investigator, who, when he initially arrived to the UK, experienced challenges for years. He states he had to survive on under twenty pounds a week while his refugee application was considered.

Asylum seekers now receive approximately £49 a per week - or £9.95 if they are in accommodation which offers meals, according to government policies.

"Realistically saying, this isn't enough to maintain a dignified existence," explains Mr Avicil from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are generally restricted from employment, he feels many are vulnerable to being exploited and are effectively "forced to labor in the illegal market for as low as £3 per hour".

A representative for the government department stated: "We make no apology for not granting refugee applicants the right to work - granting this would generate an motivation for individuals to come to the United Kingdom illegally."

Asylum cases can take a long time to be resolved with approximately a third requiring over 12 months, according to official statistics from the end of March this current year.

Saman explains being employed without authorization in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or mini-mart would have been extremely easy to do, but he explained to the team he would never have participated in that.

However, he explains that those he interviewed laboring in unauthorized mini-marts during his work seemed "confused", especially those whose refugee application has been rejected and who were in the appeals process.

"These individuals used all their funds to travel to the United Kingdom, they had their asylum refused and now they've forfeited their entire investment."

The other reporter agrees that these individuals seemed in dire straits.

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