Belgian hostages in Guatemala jungle for 2nd night

RIO DULCE, Guatemala (Reuters) - Four Belgian tourists, onein his seventies, were spending a second night in theGuatemalan jungle as hostages of a mob of peasant farmers onSaturday, as authorities tried to secure their release.

The two couples were seized along with two Guatemalanguides on Friday as they travelled up a river near theCaribbean coast by farmers angry over the arrest of a localMayan leader. The farmers took them upriver and held themovernight.

A leader of the indigenous farmers' group told Guatemalanradio on Saturday the six hostages would be held untilPresident Alvaro Colom agreed to talk to them.

But as night fell a spokesman for the human rightsombudsman's office, which was mediating between the governmentand the captors, told Reuters the government was respondingthat it could not negotiate with criminals.

"The situation right now is at deadlock and as long as thegovernment won't give a reply (it) is getting much morecomplicated and dangerous," spokesman Walter Ordonez said. Hesaid he was worried the government might use force to try andget the Belgians out.

The six captives were believed to be hidden in dense junglenear the town of Rio Dulce, named after the remote, emeraldgreen river they were travelling up by motor boat when theywere abducted by machete-wielding farmers.

The Belgians range in age from 59 to 74, and Ordonez saidthey were concerned about one of them who had heart problems.

The same group of farmers briefly held 29 policemen hostagein February demanding the release of Ramiro Choc, a communityleader whose supporters say he is fighting for land rights.

Close to half of Guatemala's population are indigenouspeasants, many of them landless, who often occupy land to carryout subsistence farming.

"We have the tourists in a safe place," farmers' leaderJuana Caal told Guatemalan radio earlier. "We will not let themgo until there is a dialogue with the president or the vicepresident."

Ronaldo Robles, chief spokesman for the president's office,said he believed the group was unharmed and that groups ofpolice and soldiers were searching for them on foot as thenegotiations went on by telephone.

The Belgian consulate said on Friday the Guatemalan navywas sending a ship up the river to look for the vacationers.

One of the tourists told Guatemalan radio by cell phone onFriday they were not hurt.

Land disputes were one of the catalysts for Guatemala's1960-1996 civil war between leftist guerrillas and thegovernment, which left around 250,000 people dead or missing.

Colom, who took office in January, has vowed to reducepoverty and violence.

(Additional reporting by Herbert Hernandez in GuatemalaCity; Writing by Catherine Bremer)