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UPSC CSE Prelims 2015 · GS paper

Amnesty International is

A question from UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2015, General Studies, explained with its sources.

Prelims 2015 · archive

Easy

Amnesty International is

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) a global Human Rights Movement

Amnesty International is a non-governmental body that campaigns for human rights worldwide. It describes itself as a global movement of people working for human rights. It is not a UN agency, not a poverty-relief charity and not a medical-emergency agency.

  • ✗ (a) Amnesty is not a UN agency. It is an independent NGO. Refugee relief in civil wars is the work of UNHCR, a UN body.
  • ✓ (b) Amnesty calls itself a global movement of millions of people committed to a future where human rights are enjoyed by everyone. NCERT also describes it as an NGO that campaigns for the protection of human rights all over the world.
  • ✗ (c) Amnesty is a non-governmental organisation, but its work is human rights campaigning, not help for very poor people.
  • ✗ (d) Amnesty is not inter-governmental; it is an NGO. Medical help in war zones is the work of bodies such as Médecins Sans Frontières or the Red Cross.

Remember · Amnesty International is an NGO, not a UN agency. It campaigns for human rights worldwide, based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Médecins Sans Frontières does medical aid.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Contemporary World Politics, Ch 4 (practise this chapter)

Sources

Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2015, General Studies paper. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 25 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·

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