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Millionaire convicted pack rapist Peter McNamara was this week relaxing on the deck of his Tauranga home as his victim continued to fight his early release from prison.
Speaking publicly for the first time since McNamara's release two-and-a-half years into a seven-year sentence, the woman said the Parole Board's decision was "wrong in principle".
"What keeps me going is the hope that perhaps my experience will lead to some fundamental changes in the justice system so that other victims of rape will be have their faith restored in it."
McNamara was convicted alongside former policemen Bob Schollum and Brad Shipton for the brutal attack in Mt Maunganui in 1989.
After his release on Tuesday he returned to the house he shares with his wife, Joanne Percy, and their two children, one of whom was conceived with sperm smuggled out of prison by a guard. McNamara could return to prison if his victim's High Court appeal is successful.
The woman, who has permanent name suppression, said she bore McNamara and his family no grudge for enjoying his early release. But she hoped her appeal would change "systemic failure" in the justice system, which does not fully recognise the harm done to victims of violent crime such as rape.
"I can imagine how happy Joanne Percy and her children are to have their dad and husband home, and I certainly don't begrudge them that.
"Lives have to be rebuilt and relationships re-established. Realistically, who wouldn't be out enjoying themselves after being locked in a prison for two years?"
One of her lawyers, Nikki Pender, said McNamara's release would damage community safety if victims lost faith in the system and did not press charges. Lawyer and former Act MP Stephen Franks and Garth McVicar of the Sensible Sentencing Trust are helping with the appeal.
The Parole Board is bound by the principle that offenders must not be detained any longer than is consistent with the safety of the community.
Franks said an amendment to the Parole Act last year stated parole was a privilege, not a right, but had never been tested.
McNamara's parole conditions include not speaking to the media for 12 months.
In its decision to release McNamara, the Parole Board noted members disagreed on the weight that should be given to victim submissions and called for more advice from the High Court.
"At present, there is no such authoritative guidance pointing to how we should exercise our discretion."
The High Court will hear lawyers for both sides for the first time at a closed hearing on February 4. Schollum and Shipton are to appear before the Parole Board in March and May respectively.
Former firefighter Warren Hales was convicted of abducting the woman after admitting the offence. Last year his brother, Tauranga policeman Steve Hales, resigned after being caught looking up secret details of where the victim lived on the police computer.
