diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index e69080f5..cd77727c 100755
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -17,8 +17,8 @@ entry_points = {
     ]
 }
 
-README = open('README.rst').read()
-CHANGELOG = open('docs/changelog.rst').read()
+README = open('README.rst', 'r', encoding='utf-8').read()
+CHANGELOG = open('docs/changelog.rst', 'r', encoding='utf-8').read()
 
 setup(
     name='pelican',