UPSC Mains 2021 GS4 Q5a — International ethics
“Refugees should not be turned back to the country where they would face persecution or human right violation.” Examine the statement with reference to ethical dimension being violated by the nation claiming to be democratic with open society. (Answer in 150 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- Examine
- Scope keywords
- Refugees should not be turned backpersecution or human right violationethical dimension being violatednation claiming to be democraticopen society
- Implicit sub-parts
- The ethical principle of Non-Refoulement as a cornerstone of international morality.
- The inherent contradiction between democratic values (liberty, equality) and the exclusion of vulnerable non-citizens.
- The tension between national sovereignty/security and the 'Open Society' ideal of universal human rights.
- A critique of utilitarian arguments (resource scarcity) versus deontological duties (duty to protect life).
- Common pitfalls
- Treating it as a GS-2 International Relations question by focusing too much on the 1951 Refugee Convention rather than ethics.
- Failing to address the specific 'Democratic' and 'Open Society' qualifiers mentioned in the prompt.
- Writing a generic essay on the Rohingya or Syrian crisis without analyzing the underlying moral philosophy (e.g., Kantian ethics or Rawlsian 'Veil of Ignorance').
- Taking a purely security-centric stand without acknowledging the ethical 'violation' the question asks to examine.
- Dimensions required
- Deontological Ethics (Duty to protect)Political Philosophy (Social Contract vs. Universalism)Human Rights FrameworkVirtue Ethics (Compassion and Empathy of a State)Utilitarianism (Security vs. Humanity)
- Marks allocation hint
Spend 30 words defining Non-Refoulement and the 'Open Society' concept. Devote 90 words to the core analysis of ethical contradictions—specifically how turning back refugees violates the democratic promise of dignity and justice. Use the final 30 words to suggest a synthesis where security and ethics can coexist through humanitarian corridors or vetting.
Unlock the full analysis for this question
You've seen the question and its examiner-intent decoding. Subscribers also get:
- 🔗 Similar Previous Year Questions — cross-year, cross-paper matches so you study the topic, not the question
- 📚 Source Map — verified citations from Laxmikanth, NCERT, PRS, Yojana, Economic Survey, Spectrum
- 🌱 How this topic is evolving — current-affairs bridge anchored to live TARS news clustering
- 🧭 Examiner's Pattern — how the topic has been framed across every year UPSC has tested it
- ✍️ Answer Skeleton — a structured outline (intro → body → conclusion) you can flesh out
- 🎯 AI evaluation — write your answer, get rubric-based scoring from gs-eval
Or browse 132+ free preview questions across all years and papers — the first 3 questions of every paper are unlocked.
Ready to practice?
Subscribers can attempt this question in 150 words and get an instant, rubric-based evaluation showing where they stand.
Subscribe to evaluate your answer →