The mother of Bradley Manning, the U.S. army intelligence officer convicted of passing on more than 700,000 government classified documents to WikiLeaks, gave a rare interview over the weekend in which she told her son to “Never give up hope.”
Pfc. Manning, who faces a maximum of 136 years of imprisonment, tantamount to a life sentence without the possibility of parole, was found guilty by a military judge last week of multiple violations under the Espionage Act and the Computer Fraud and Abuses Act.
In Susan Manning’s interview to the British Mail tabloid on Sunday, her first public comments ever, she said, “I know I may never see you again but I know you will be free one day. I pray it is soon. I love you, Bradley and I always will.”
Against injustice
In her interview Ms. Manning also revealed that her son had an “obsession with computers from an early age”, and she had “noted his growing rage against perceived injustices”.
Ms. Manning’s sister, Sharon Staples, the aunt who helped bring up Pfc. Manning after his parents’ marriage collapsed, added, “He just seemed to have a burning sense of wanting to right any injustice from such a young age. His childhood was cut short by all the unhappiness he experienced as a boy.”
Ms Manning has been stricken by health problems which have, since February 2011, left her unable to visit her son.
