Three committees in session throughout the congress discussed new dimensions of criminality and crime prevention in the context of development; criminal justice processes and perspectives in a changing world; crime victims; youth, crime, and justice; and the formulation and application of United Nations standards and norms in criminal justice. There were also discussions on the abolition of the death penalty, crime victim protection, family violence, and the social defense movement in the third world. Deliberations on the independence of the judiciary and victims' rights related to abuses of power illustrate the processes and dynamics of the congress. The final statement on judicial independence affirms that it shall be guaranteed by the state in the law of the country. A central victims' rights issue is the definition of victim. The final statement narrowly defines victims as 'persons who, individually or collectively, have suffered harm ... through acts or omissions which are in violation of criminal laws operative within member states, including those laws which proscribe abuse of power.'