Ivanka Trump's Tokyo speech on women empowerment finds few takers

Ivanka's speech had a noble intent but the daughter of US President Donald Trump - who himself has faced allegations of sexual harassment in the past - found rows of empty seats in front of her.

This photo was tweeted by @IvankaTrump

New Delhi: A known face in Japan for her work in fashion and modelling industry, Ivanka Trump however did not find many takers for her views on women empowerment in Tokyo. Part of US first family's visit to Asia, she found a largely empty hall staring back at her at an event here on Friday.

Ivanka made a brief address to the World Assembly for Women here and shared her opinion on sexual harassment and her work in the US administration to empower role of women in the country's economy. While she made no reference to allegations of sexual harassment that her father Donald Trump has faced in the past, she highlighted the grim scenario currently facing US' entertainment and political worlds. "All too often our workplace culture fails to treat women with appropriate respect," she said.

While her speech may have had a noble intent, its impact was a rather feeble considering more than half of the chairs in the hall were empty. According to South China Morning Post, officials said tight security arrangements resulted in not everyone managing to enter on time for the speech. Ground reporters however stated that there was no crowd waiting outside either.

A lot of people came dressed up as empty seats to hear @IvankaTrump speak at #WAW2017. Word has gotten out that she’s a total fraud. pic.twitter.com/yHnpUpo60Q

— John Toner (@jptoner50) November 3, 2017

Rows of empty chairs brought back memories of the comparatively low attendance at the inauguration ceremony of Donald Trump in January. At the time, Trump had claimed 1.5 million people attended the ceremony although photos from the venue pointed to a far-less figure.

Since then, Trump has faced far more serious problems than attendance and real-world following. Despite mounting troubles back home, he has now embarked on the longest-ever Asia tour by a US President in recent years and will visit Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines in a nearly two-week tour.  Ivanka was expected to be by her father's side in South Korea and China but recently said she will return home early.