A Congolese army spokesman, Olivier Hamuli, said the rapes were committed by individual solders who are being prosecuted under the country's military law. Military analysts have blamed the indiscipline on poor training and commanders who exercise little control over troops.

"Trust between soldiers and their superiors is extremely low in the Congolese army," Jason Stearns, a Congo expert and head of the Rift Valley Institute, a think tank based in Nairobi. "This reduces the overall capacity of commanders to control and motivate their troops."