The visit by Thailand's king to see survivors of a nursery massacre is a rare recent public outing for a monarch officially regarded as semi-divine but who came in for unprecedented criticism during street protests in 2020.

King Maha Vajiralongkorn travelled to a hospital in northeastern Nong Bua Lamphu province with Queen Suthida to meet relatives of the 36 people murdered by an ex-policeman in a gun and knife rampage.

Around 50 royalist supporters, some wearing the king's official colour yellow, waited outside the hospital ahead of the monarch's visit.

"I'm one of the Thais that love our country and love the monarchy," said 61-year-old Sodsri Yangyuen.

"The king has shown the utmost sympathy to the Nong Bua Lamphu people and the children killed in the attack by coming here. I just feel so grateful that he's coming to see the Nong Bua Lamphu people."

Kesininat Amatratana, 63, said she came to show her gratitude to the king for supporting the community.

"If I don't come here then I won't be able to live with myself. I'm grateful for his care for the people," she said.

• Families mourn Thai nursery dead ahead of king's visit

- Venerated royals -

Photos published on the government media department's official Facebook page showed the king, dressed in a dark grey suit, greeting people at the hospital, accompanied by the queen.

• No Filipinos hurt in Thailand nursery attack so far, PH Ambassador says

King Vajiralongkorn sits at the apex of Thai power, his influence permeating every aspect of society.

He is protected by some of the world's strictest lese majeste laws, which outlaw almost any criticism of him or his immediate family.

But the once-unassailable institution faced unheard-of criticism during mass youth-led street protests in 2020.

The pro-democracy movement called for reforms to the monarchy including an end to the draconian royal defamation laws, which can lead to long prison sentences.

The palace stepped up public appearances in late 2020 and early 2021, including one occasion on which the king visited prisons, sweeping floors alongside his official consort.

But he has been seen less in public since the protests ebbed away in 2021.

The previous ruler, king Bhumibol Adulyadej, was widely venerated by Thais during his 70-year reign.

But King Vajiralongkorn, who ascended the throne in 2016, has yet to achieve the same level of widespread affection as his father.

An episode of palace intrigue set tongues wagging in 2019, when Sineenat Wongvajirapakdi, a former royal bodyguard, was installed as official consort, only to be stripped of her rank and titles just three months later.

She was then reinstated in September 2020, with all her titles and honours restored.

Married four times and with a passion for flying, the king spends much of his time in Germany, where his Boeing 737 was briefly seized in 2011 as part of a financial dispute between the Thai government and a German company.

Meanwhile, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Saturday sent his condolences to Thailand over the attack victims and also Indonesia over the stadium stampede earlier this week that killed more than 100 people.

“We condole deeply with the families of those lost in the recent tragedies of the Indonesia football stampede and the Thailand daycare attack,” Marcos said in a social media post.

“We pray for the recovery of the survivors, healing of those left behind, and that the departed may rest in peace,” he said. — With a report by Katrina Domingo, ABS-CBN News