A West Coast woman who was abducted and held in a dungeon as a child spoke out against her kidnapper Thursday, saying he should remain behind bars.

Abby Drover was 12 when she was captured, locked up, and sexually assaulted by a neighbour in March, 1976.

The girl was rescued from a small room in a garage in Port Moody, B.C. six months later.

Donald Alexander Hay

Donald Alexander Hay, now 66, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison.

He had actually pretended to help police in the search for the missing girl, who was slowly starving to death in a secret room on his property.

After being denied release in 1997, Hay is now eligible for another parole hearing on Friday.

Abby Drover

"I'm very worried about him getting out of jail and I'd like to make sure that he doesn't," Drover told reporters Thursday.

Although she won't be allowed to speak at the parole hearing, she hopes her presence in the room will make a difference.

Drover is convinced that Hay is still a threat to children. "He's an alcoholic and a pedophile, and that doesn't change," she said.

Dungeon where Abby Drover was held

Now a mother of five children, Drover said she would have preferred not to discuss the case in public again, reliving the nightmare of her confinement.

But some recent attempted abductions in the Vancouver area prompted her to speak up.

"If we're all honest with ourselves, we can all remember the victim's name second, and I want to change that," Drover said – insisting that victims of crime, especially children, must know that they can count on society for support.

"I've been living with this for 25 years, almost, and with everything that's going on in the world today, I would have loved to stay silent and keep my peace," she told reporters.

"But I feel like there is a reason why I survived and there is a reason why I have a voice."