Conceptual Foundations of the Right to Remain Silent

Abstract

Criminal justice systems across the common and civil law divide have traditionally
grappled with the nature, scope and ambit of trial rights generally, particularly the right
to a fair trial. A key ingredient of a fair trial is the right to remain silent. This right to
remain silent conceptual foundations contribution is the first part of a two series
interrogation of the right in the Zimbabwean context. The analysis in this article is meant
to provide the jurisprudential context and development of the right to remain silent as it
currently manifests in criminal justice systems globally. The article analyses the scope of
the right and its historical development at the international and African regional level
invariably situating it in the broader right to a fair trial discourse.