Aparliamentary by-election in Bang-kok on July 25th was the first test of public opinion since May, when the army put down street protests in which 89 people died. The opposition Pua Thai party made the most of it, picking a jailed "red shirt" leader, Korkaew Pikulthong, as its candidate, and calling for justice for victims of the crackdown. Campaigning from behind bars, he drew a substantial 43% of the votes. And although he was beaten by the candidate of the ruling Democrat Party, the jailbird's performance shows that the red shirts are not squashed yet.
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