The Reasons Our Team Went Undercover to Reveal Crime in the Kurdish Population

Two Kurdish-background men consented to work covertly to expose a operation behind illegal High Street businesses because the lawbreakers are damaging the image of Kurdish people in the UK, they say.

The two, who we are referring to as Saman and Ali, are Kurdish journalists who have both resided lawfully in the United Kingdom for a long time.

Investigators discovered that a Kurdish crime network was managing small shops, hair salons and vehicle cleaning services the length of Britain, and wanted to discover more about how it operated and who was taking part.

Equipped with hidden cameras, Ali and Saman posed as Kurdish-origin refugee applicants with no permission to be employed, attempting to purchase and run a convenience store from which to distribute unlawful cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.

The investigators were successful to uncover how straightforward it is for a person in these conditions to establish and operate a enterprise on the main street in plain sight. Those involved, we learned, compensate Kurdish individuals who have British citizenship to legally establish the enterprises in their names, enabling to fool the authorities.

Saman and Ali also managed to secretly document one of those at the heart of the network, who asserted that he could eliminate government fines of up to £60,000 encountered those employing unauthorized workers.

"Personally aimed to contribute in uncovering these unlawful operations [...] to declare that they do not speak for our community," states one reporter, a ex- refugee applicant himself. The reporter entered the country without authorization, having fled Kurdistan - a territory that spans the boundaries of Iraq, Iran, Turkey and Syria but which is not internationally recognised as a nation - because his well-being was at risk.

The journalists admit that tensions over illegal migration are elevated in the UK and state they have both been anxious that the probe could intensify conflicts.

But the other reporter states that the illegal employment "harms the entire Kurdish-origin community" and he feels driven to "expose it [the criminal network] out into public view".

Additionally, the journalist mentions he was anxious the publication could be exploited by the extreme right.

He explains this notably struck him when he realized that far-right activist Tommy Robinson's national unity protest was happening in the capital on one of the weekends he was operating covertly. Banners and banners could be spotted at the gathering, showing "we demand our country back".

Saman and Ali have both been monitoring social media feedback to the inquiry from within the Kurdish-origin community and say it has generated intense frustration for certain individuals. One social media comment they observed stated: "How can we locate and track [the undercover reporters] to kill them like dogs!"

One more urged their families in the Kurdish region to be attacked.

They have also encountered accusations that they were agents for the British authorities, and traitors to other Kurdish people. "We are not spies, and we have no desire of damaging the Kurdish-origin community," one reporter explains. "Our aim is to expose those who have damaged its standing. We are proud of our Kurdish-origin identity and deeply concerned about the activities of such persons."

Most of those seeking refugee status claim they are escaping political discrimination, according to an expert from the a refugee support organization, a charity that helps asylum seekers and refugee applicants in the UK.

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

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

"Honestly saying, this is not sufficient to sustain a acceptable lifestyle," explains the expert from the RWCA.

Because asylum seekers are mostly prevented from working, he feels numerous are open to being exploited and are effectively "obligated to work in the black economy for as low as £3 per hour".

A official for the Home Office stated: "The government are unapologetic for denying asylum seekers the authorization to work - granting this would create an motivation for individuals to migrate to the UK without authorization."

Refugee applications can require multiple years to be decided with nearly a third taking over one year, according to official statistics from the spring this current year.

The reporter says being employed illegally in a vehicle cleaning service, barbershop or mini-mart would have been quite straightforward to accomplish, but he explained to the team he would not have participated in that.

Nevertheless, he explains that those he encountered laboring in unauthorized convenience stores during his investigation seemed "lost", particularly those whose asylum claim has been refused and who were in the appeal stage.

"They expended their entire funds to travel to the UK, they had their refugee application rejected and now they've forfeited their entire investment."

Ali concurs that these individuals seemed hopeless.

"If [they] state you're forbidden to work - but simultaneously [you]