Two victims of Japan's wartime forced labor and an organization supporting them have decided not to take part in a recently launched government-civilian consultation group tasked with resolving the issue of forced labor compensation.

A civic group dedicated to the issue announced the boycott on Thursday, saying it reached the decision after holding talks with elderly victims Yang Geum-deok and Kim Seong-ju and their attorneys.

Yang reportedly prioritizes an apology from Japan, while Kim said that because Japan forced them to work, it is only natural they be compensated by those responsible, apparently rejecting the plan to pay by subrogation.

The plan called for ​payments to be made by a third party instead of the Japanese firms that engaged in forced labor practices.

The civic group reiterated that there is no alternative to an apology and compensation by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

The group also criticized the government, saying it should focus on Japan as the responsible party instead of seeking an internal solution.

Vice foreign minister Cho Hyun-dong led discussions in the second meeting of the consultation body on Thursday.

In 2018, the South Korean Supreme Court separately ordered Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Nippon Steel Corporation to compensate Korean forced labor victims. The Japanese firms, however, refused to comply, leading to a court seizure of their assets in Korea, which could face liquidation this fall.