Index: smart/backends/rpm/redcarpet.py
===================================================================
--- smart/backends/rpm/redcarpet.py	(revision 704)
+++ smart/backends/rpm/redcarpet.py	(working copy)
@@ -294,7 +294,7 @@
         parser.StartElementHandler = self.startElement
         parser.EndElementHandler = self.endElement
         parser.CharacterDataHandler = self.charData
-        parser.returns_unicode = True
+        parser.returns_unicode = False
 
         self._lastoffset = 0
         self._mod = 0