NUEVO JEURSALEN, Mexico (AP) - About 100 Zapatista rebel supporters armed with machetes, some with bandanas covering their faces, seized an American-owned tourism ranch in the southern state of Chiapas yesterday, and vowed to keep it.

Dozens of machete-wielding men surrounded reporters, who hiked in to the ranch, and told them to leave. Roads to the property had been blocked by the Zapatistas weeks earlier, and the two American owners had left for their own safety earlier this month.
"We're here to stay," shouted the rebel supporters, none of whom would give their name.

The men were lounging inside the dozen small buildings on the ranch, where - prior to the start of rebel takeover threats in December - tourists ate homegrown food, learned about tropical agriculture, and visited the nearby Mayan ruins of Tonina.

"This is a robbery with two months of advance, written notice," said Ellen Jones, who owned and operated the Rancho Esmeralda ranch with her husband, Glen Wersch.
"We just had our lives destroyed, our home taken from us, our business ruined and our life savings evaporate."

She said about 100 invaders arrived at about 7:30 am, forced two caretakers to show them around the 10.5 hectare (26-acre) property, and then allowed the two to leave.
"They came in with machetes, but were not violent, did not harm our two employees," Jones said.
She said police were summoned, but that they declined to enter the property to confront the invaders. State officials had no immediate comment.

The seizure occurred a few hours before President Vicente Fox arrived in Chiapas to inaugurate a programme called the, "National Crusade for Legal Security in the Countryside".
"He picked a bad day," Jones said.

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