Tolibov was freed today, two months after the country's Supreme Court initially ordered his release.
Tolibov was jailed in July on charges of drunken behavior and abusing his position as a local government adviser. Tolibov has always maintained his innocence, saying he was punished for writing about alleged local government corruption.
"I committed no crime,” Tolibov said after being released. “I went through all this just because of the articles I wrote defending people's rights."
Tolibov said the first weeks of his detention were hard, but that conditions improved after the director of the country's penitentiary system was replaced in October. He added that he was not mistreated or tortured while in prison.
Tolibov's jailing was monitored and publicized by a range of governments and international and local media rights groups.
Reporters Without Borders condemned what it called the "utterly disproportionate sentence" Tolibov was given and said "free expression is under great threat in Tajikistan if criticism of the authorities is treated as a serious crime."
Tolibov expressed gratitude to those who supported him throughout the process, including the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Reporters Without Borders, and association of independent media in Tajikistan.
Tolibov plans to give further details of his incarceration and release at a press conference on 17 December.
Asked what his plans are now, Tolibov said "I was a journalist before being imprisoned and I will continue being a journalist now."
RFE/RL's World: 2005 In Pictures
A slideshow of images related to the top news stories of 2005 from throughout RFE/RL's broadcast region with links to RFE/RL's reporting.
See also:
2005 In Review: Central Asia Witnesses Revolution, Continued Crackdown
2005 In Review: Does The Presence Of Western Election Observers Make A Difference?
2005 In Review: The Geopolitical Game In Central Asia
2005 In Review: Migrants, Refugees Victims Of Incoherent Laws In Post-Soviet States
2005 In Review: The Transformation Of Television In Russia
2005 In Review: Russia's Centralization Gathers Pace
2005 In Review: A Year Of Hopes, Disappointments For Afghans And Iraqis