Abstract：The right to silence is a significant procedural right processed by the defendant. It enables the defendant to defend his human rights and restrain his state power. The very existence of the right to silence embodies the value and function of criminal suit, ensures the justice of the structure of criminal suit and perfects the regulation of evidence in criminal suit. Therefore, the right to silence is an indispensable component of a comprehensive system of rights. The present paper provides a study of several basic theories of the right to silence with the purpose of perfecting the criminal procedure law in China.
