A/HRC/34/34 dismay was expressed at, in particular, allegations received in relation to States members of the Human Rights Council. The mandate holders were also seeking ways to include the Sustainable Development Goals in their work. 6. Civil society, non-governmental organizations and national human rights institutions 94. In opening the meeting with more than 80 representatives of civil society, the Chair of the Coordination Committee, on behalf of the mandate holders, expressed appreciation for their work and collaboration with the special procedures, which played an important role in the fulfilment of their mandates. The representatives of civil society in turn thanked the mandate holders for their work, and raised a number of issues concerning the special procedures system as a whole. Multiple civil society members raised the issue of communications, and provided feedback about the substantive and procedural elements of the process. Many also raised the issue of country visits, and of how the special procedures could respond to States, including those with standing invitations, that did not give mandate holders access to their territories. 95. The mandate holders responded to these concerns by discussing recent changes to the communications procedure, including the introduction of an online questionnaire for submitting information and the ongoing development of a searchable public database. Further discussions on the strengthening of the communications process were scheduled at the current annual meeting. The mandate holders also shared their views about the difficulties they experienced in receiving invitations for country visits and in gaining access to occupied territories. 96. Other topics of discussion included acts of intimidation and reprisal, ad hominem attacks on mandate holders, the implementation of recommendations, and coordination among mandates. A number of thematic and country specific issues were also raised, including the rights of persons with disabilities, the rights of older persons, the right to selfdetermination and the right to development, and extreme poverty, internal displacement and environmental issues. 18