The case of human rights organization Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN) was included in the 2018 report of the Secretary-General196 on allegations of an investigation following participation by its members in an NGO side event in the margins of the June 2017 Human Rights Council, and for the exercise of their freedom of expression on Twitter (MDV 3/2018).197 Some of the below updates on the situation of the MDN and its members were not reported previously due to fear of further retaliation at the time. 88. On 7 November 2019, special procedures mandate holders addressed the Government’s decision to dissolve the MDN following the 2016 publication of a report on radicalization on its website. They also raised concern about the online harassment, intimidation, threats and death threats against its members, including Ms. Shahindha Ismail, Ms. Azra Naseem, and Mr. Mushfiq Mohamed (MDV 1/2019). On 15 January 2020, the Government responded, stating that the decision to dissolve the NGO was not reached arbitrarily but after completion of due process, including a thorough and impartial investigation concluding that the report had content that intentionally sought to mock the tenets of Islam. The Government highlighted its renewed efforts in combatting religious extremism in its quest to maintain a modern liberal society while balancing religious values.198 According to information received by OHCHR, in August 2020, the MDN filed a suit against the reportedly arbitrary closing of its organization at the Maldives Civil Court. As of May 2021, the case was ongoing. 89. It was reported to OHCHR that, following the MDN’s presentation of a joint submission to the November 2020 UPR of the Maldives,199 the NGO and some of its members were the target of another coordinated media and on-line vilification campaign, including threats. They were portrayed as “anti-Islamic”, “blasphemous”, “promoting extremist ideology”, and as a “threat to the nation”. Some posts contained threatening language such as “Blood is boiling...teeth are clenching...Fists are shaking”. Due to the continued serious threats, MDN’s members Ms. Shahindha Ismail, Ms. Azra Naseem, Mr. Mushfiq Mohamed and Mr. Leevan Sharif have relocated abroad.